


The Taste of Rust in My Mouth

by brumalbreeze



Category: Free!, Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-05
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-03-16 09:40:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3483455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brumalbreeze/pseuds/brumalbreeze
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There is no beauty in death. And, in the same vein, there is no such thing as a “beautiful death.”</p><p>Death was pitiful and unsightly, and that was all it ever was.</p><p>That was what Ryuugazaki Rei had firmly believed from the beginning.</p><p>(<i>Free!</i> and <i>Tokyo Ghoul</i> cross-over fic. No prior knowledge of <i>Tokyo Ghoul</i> is required to read this story.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I kind of started and finished catching up with _Tokyo Ghoul_ 's anime and manga in like four days. Whoops.
> 
> **I won't be giving this fic specific warning tags because I don't like spoilers, but this basically has every applicable warning that _Tokyo Ghoul_ has. This will also be sexually explicit. In short, please read at your own discretion.**
> 
> (My commissions are open! For more information, [please see here](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/commissions).)
> 
> Also on [Tumblr](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/post/112741873773/the-taste-of-rust-in-my-mouth-chapter).

There is no beauty in death. And, in the same vein, there is no such thing as a “beautiful death.”

Death was pitiful and unsightly, and that was all it ever was.

That was what Ryuugazaki Rei had firmly believed from the beginning.

 

* * *

 

“N-No, please—please don’t! I-I can’t… I can’t die!” the man blabbered and wept incoherently. His face was red from his sobbing and his own blood.

He was a truly pathetic and disgusting sight to look at.

Rei’s upper lip curled in abhorrence. He stepped forward, causing the man to raise a half-cry and desperately scoot back until his back hit a concrete wall. With wild eyes, he turned around and stared at the towering obstacle which prevented him from escaping.

“P-Please…” he blubbered again with tears and snot running down his chin.

“It’s so unsightly when you humans scream and cry like this. For once, I’d like there to be someone who would give up obediently,” Rei said in a low, even voice. “So can’t you just be good and die quietly for me?”

He grinned, and his red eyes flashed.

“Hi-Hiiyaaaa—!”

 _Crunch_.

 

* * *

 

Flesh, tendons, cartilage, bone, blood.

Rei licked the side of his mouth and breathed in deeply while he swallowed a mouthful of meat. It was sweet and delicious on his tongue, and it smelled so good. He took another bite from the supple arm before him and pulled. Something tore from it and slapped him wetly on the cheek. Rei ignored it and licked at the hole he had just created. Shivers ran down his spine as the wonderful taste filled his senses. He sucked more blood from the severed appendage.

He must have looked just as hideous as his dinner right now, with sticky, drying blood smeared across his mouth and cheeks, but he didn’t care. It had been a while since he ate, and he had desperately missed the feel of eating still-warm human flesh. His schoolwork had gotten in the way of his feeding schedule, and if he had waited any longer, things might have gotten dangerous.

At one point in his life, Rei had wished that he could feast at a table with the appropriate utensils at designated times throughout the day which didn’t interrupt his daily agenda. Instead, he had to eat in dark, abandoned alleyways with his hands and teeth. But those foolish wishes had been made many years ago. It had been long since he had resigned to the fact that he would never be able to eat a beautifully arranged meal at a table.

That would never be the life for him because that was the road reserved only for humans.

And how Rei loathed humans.

The fools who lived in the big cities, with their mass-produced and prepared meats, pre-cut into perfect servings and daintily packaged on little foam containers, knew nothing of the harsh reality of life. They had never needed to hunt prey for food before. Never had to fight against their struggling limbs, choke and pierce them until they went still. Never had to tear into soft bellies with blunt fingernails and gorge on raw guts and gnaw on skin with their teeth until it broke and gave way to sweet flesh.

All they had to do was cut their meat and neatly cook it. Humans were soft and indolent things with the naivety of a child, no matter how old they were. They knew nothing of the world.

They were stupid and haughty, and he hated them.

But Rei abhorred their ugliness in death more than he despised their stupidity.

There was no dignity in it, no saving grace, no delicacy.

In all his years of hunting for food, he had never encountered a human who quietly died without a fuss. No, they always screamed and cried and begged. The more hilarious ones would try to _bribe_.

Rei always laughed at those desperate ones.

Because what made them think that their promises of money and riches would mean anything to a hungry ghoul?

 

* * *

 

A sharp gust of wind threw itself bodily against the people who were standing outside, raising indignant yells and shrieks. Debris and dust flew into people’s eyes, and leaves were torn prematurely from branches.

Rei clicked his tongue and raised an arm to cover his eyes as another gale nipped at his clothing and swirled trash around him. He had listened to the weather report earlier that morning, so he knew it was going to be windy but this level of wind was unexpected. Judging from how everyone around him was reacting, no one else was completely prepared for the windstorm either.

There was a loud yell from somewhere in front of him, and what seemed like an armful of papers was hurled into the air. Thanks to the unruly gusts, they were scattered every which way, though a good number of sheets went toward Rei. He glanced up and saw a blond man quickly running after his runaway notes while the wind died down momentarily.

A sheet slapped rudely against his ankles, and he reached down to get it. Just as soon as he picked up the sheet, another one flew toward him, as if beckoning him to pick it up as well. It flapped tauntingly at him, so he snatched it up. No one else was near him, so Rei somehow found himself chasing after wayward papers until he had ended up with a dozen or so sheets.

He was about to reach the last piece when a hand slapped down on it and picked it up. It was the owner of the notes.

“Phew!” he said while tucking the dirtied paper into his own haphazard pile.

Rei sniffed coldly and thrust his collection of sheets toward him. “You dropped these,” he said simply.

The shorter man looked at the pile, glanced up again, and beamed. “Thanks!” he said brightly as he took the pages from Rei. “You really saved me there!”

Curtly, he nodded and started to walk away. In the first place, he had not meant to help the blond retrieve his papers, but seeing that many sheets flitter around campus like common litter would certainly not have been very beautiful.

“Wait!”

His wrist was grabbed, and Rei stiffened. He turned around and brought his gaze low enough to reach the blond’s line-of-sight.

The shorter man appeared to be completely unaffected by his icy demeanor. He was still grinning when he said, “Let me at least treat you to a drink for helping me out! No one else did, after all.”

“It’s fine,” he said, glancing briefly and pointedly at his wrist, which the other man still held. “I just didn’t want your papers flying all over campus.”

“Aw, but you still helped, right? Seriously, if you’re not in a rush or anything, just let me buy you a coffee or something!”

A frown pulled the corner of Rei’s mouth down. “You’re being very persistent and annoying.”

With a short laugh, the blond shrugged up one shoulder and tilted his head. “I’m just being nice! You seriously saved me a bunch of trouble, so please? Having one coffee with me s’not gonna kill you or anything.”

 _I beg to differ_ , Rei thought to himself. He had on more than one instance invited his victims out for a cup of coffee before dining on them afterward. But he wasn’t going to be telling this stranger. “If I accept your offer, will you leave me alone?”

“Hmmm,” the blond said and finally let go of his wrist. He rearranged his papers in his arms and smiled again. “Maybe! But you’ll never know until you let me properly thank you!”

The wind which blew by them took away the heavy sigh that Rei let out. He pushed up his glasses and glanced at the blond out of the corner of his eyes. “Very well. I will accept your invitation to a cup of coffee. But that will be all. I am a very busy person.”

“Awesome! There’s this one coffee shop that’s nearby that we can go to! You probably know about it already, but their drinks are pretty bomb. By the way,” the shorter man said, “I’m Hazuki Nagisa! Nice to meet you.” He held out his hand.

Rei took it and shook it briefly. “Ryuugazaki Rei.”

 

* * *

 

“Man, who would’ve thought that the winds would be _this_ strong today!” Nagisa said as he stepped into the warm interior of the coffee shop. He used his free hand to rake through his tousled hair and untangle it. “Oh, looks like we’re lucky. The line’s not too long!” He went straight to it without waiting for Rei to follow.

Just as Nagisa had said earlier, Rei was indeed familiar with this shop. He enjoyed its coffee the most out of all the locations near campus, though that wasn’t saying much. It had gotten to the point where most of the baristas knew him. He also figured that the simplicity of his usual order helped them remember him.

“Ryuugazaki-kun,” Nagisa said once he caught up, “what would you like to drink?”

“A black coffee will be fine.”

“Huh? That’s it? I _am_ buying it for you, you know, so you don’t have to hold back! Just order whatever you want.”

Rei sniffed again. “I do not like the taste of the other beverages offered here. Besides, the high amount of sugars and syrups in their drinks are bad for one’s health.”

The shorter man giggled. “You’re a pretty funny guy, Ryuugazaki-kun, but whatever you say. Ah, here we are.” They reached the front of the line already. “Hi, could I get one black coffee, and…. Let’s see, I’ll have the…”

Their orders were finished quickly, and Nagisa was the one who picked up the tray for them. He was bobbing his head around to look for an open seat, but Rei had already scouted out his usual spot near the back of the shop, so he started to walk toward it.

“Good eyes!” Nagisa said cheerily and slid the tray onto the table.

Nagisa had ordered a large frosty drink that had extra whipped cream, caramel, and strawberry sauce, and Rei was pretty sure he had gotten extra of half a dozen other sweet ingredients and syrups as well. Compared to his Spartan black coffee, Nagisa’s order was truly a work of art. Disastrous, avant-garde and interpretive art, perhaps, but art nevertheless.

Rei picked up his cup and took a careful sip of it. He allowed the bitterness to coat his tongue. The brew was a little off, but he couldn’t complain too much of it. For a chain restaurant, this shop’s coffee was good enough. Since he could only ingest human flesh and imbibe human blood and coffee, Rei’s high standards for coffee were, to him, not unreasonable.

Nagisa sucked on his straw. Rei’s eyes followed the level of Nagisa’s beverage as it sank alarmingly fast. The blond shivered. “Ooh, that’s cold.” He licked his lips and smacked them a little. “You sure you don’t want some of mine?”

Rei eyed the drink suspiciously when Nagisa tilted it toward him. He wrinkled his nose. To him, anything other than coffee already tasted disgusting and had the consistency of slime in his mouth, but Nagisa’s hazardous sludge of syrups and whipped cream must have surely been revolting to any other human as well.

“No thank you,” he said. Unconsciously, he moved his cup of coffee closer to himself.

Nagisa smiled again at him. “Suit yourself,” he said and took another long drag from his straw.

As the blond drank, Rei discreetly appraised him. Since they appeared to be around the same age, it was expected that Nagisa was at the peak of his health. He couldn’t see much through his light layers of clothing, but Rei assumed that he was a relatively well-exercised individual with a good balance of fat and muscle. He was a little shorter than average for a typical Japanese man but appeared sturdy and capable. As annoying as he already seemed, Rei didn’t think he would be a bad potential target. He would have to see exactly _how_ annoying this Hazuki Nagisa would be though.

“By the way, what major are you?”

He looked at the shorter man and frowned slightly. “I thought you were going to leave me alone after buying me coffee.”

The blond’s eyebrows rose dramatically. “You seriously want to just sit here in dead silence while we finish our drinks?”

Rei gave him a look which said, “Is there anything wrong with that?”

“ _Ryuu_ gazaki-kun!” he dragged out the first part of his surname with a pout, “You could at least indulge me a little!”

“You said that you would leave me alone so long as I accepted your offer of a coffee,” he said stiffly, completely unamused by how childish the shorter man was acting.

“Bzzt, bzzt!” Nagisa said while crossing his index fingers together to make an “X.” “I said that I would ‘maybe’ leave you alone!”

Rei sighed and rubbed his fingers across his forehead. He had really gotten involved with a troublesome person without meaning to.

Nagisa giggled.

 

* * *

 

“Ah! Ryuugazaki-kun! You’re here today too? Is it okay if I sit here?”

Rei looked up from his textbook to see Nagisa standing in front of him. The blond looked just as cheerful as before. He didn’t even have the chance to answer the shorter man’s (rhetorical) question before Nagisa put his things on the table and sat down.

“I just ordered my drink, so it should be done soon. It’s always so lonely being here alone, so I’m glad I found you,” he said with a smile. “Oh, you’re having a plain black coffee again? You really should try some of the other stuff they have here. They’re all super good, I promise!”

If he had it his way, Rei would have sat there in utter silence and ignored the shorter man until he got tired and gave up, but Nagisa didn’t seem like the type of person who would give up very easily. Something about the way he talked agitated Rei enough to make him want to retort as well.

“As I said before, the high amount of su—”

“‘Sugars and syrups in their drinks are bad for one’s health,’ right?” Nagisa winked at him.

He was miffed at being cut off and parroted like that. Rei nodded jerkily. “Yes.”

“You should seriously try something new though. Drinking something different once or twice won’t kill you.”

 _But it would get me rather sick_ , Rei thought with a grimace.

Someone at the counter called out Nagisa’s order, and the blond stood up to get it. “Be right back.”

Rei watched him carefully as he left. People didn’t usually try to approach him since he exuded such a cold aura, and he was only ever warm and pleasant whenever he was trying to attract prey. Women were especially vulnerable to his “aristocratic charm,” but sometimes he managed to draw in some unsuspecting men too. But even though he had been nothing but ornery and close-lipped with the blond, Nagisa still kept coming back for more.

_“It’s always so lonely being here alone, so I’m glad I found you.”_

He ran his thumb against his lower lip thoughtfully.

“Loneliness” was not something Rei dwelt upon often. It was a state of being that he had gotten accustomed to since he was young, so it wasn’t as if it really affected him. Solitude suited him more anyway.

But perhaps it would be nice to get a change of pace. Playing with his next meal might serve to make his days a little less boring at the very least.

 _Very well_ , he thought to himself.

 

* * *

 

“Thanks for getting us a table, Rei-chan,” Nagisa said as he sat and put down a tray of food. The cafeteria was especially full that day and there weren’t a lot of open tables available, but Rei was able to secure a small one near the windows. “Are you sure you don’t want to buy anything though?”

“I’m fine,” he replied, glancing at the fried chicken curry that the blond had ordered.

Large chunks of potatoes, slices of mushroom, and bits and pieces of other vegetables sat in the rich mixture. On the side of the plate was an island of white rice which was lined with a lopsided army of fried chicken chunks. Steam rose from the plate.

Nagisa’s mouth was clearly watering from the hot meal in front of him, but Rei was trying to keep his face neutral as he imagined how foul the mixture of food would taste. The curry would undoubtedly feel like eating expired, congealed blood, the potatoes gritty like sand, and the vegetables slimy and wholly indigestible. The rice would probably get stuck between his teeth and gums, and the fried chicken would be impossible to swallow whole, which meant that actual chewing would be required.

Viscous foods were always the hardest to pretend to eat since they had the tendency to spread all over the tongue. Even sandwiches, with their dried sponge-like bread and disgusting fillings, were easier to swallow.

“You never eat anything when we’re hanging out though.…” Nagisa picked up his spoon and dug into his food enthusiastically.

Rei pressed his lips together tightly. “I find that the cafeteria’s menu does not contain foods that are nutritious enough for a balanced diet.”

“Are you like a hardcore athlete or something, Rei-chan?” he asked around a mouthful of rice.

“Excuse me?”

“Well, like, I have a friend—he goes to another university—who’s trying to join the Olympics, y’know? And he has this crazy strict diet and training schedule and stuff. The guy never gets a break, but he likes it, so. Anyway, I was just wondering if you were like that.”

He pushed up his glasses and thinned out his lips. “No. I simply believe that it is unsightly not to take care of one’s body and keep it in top condition. Which means that a proper diet is very important.” Rei gave the blond’s food another disdainful look. “Speaking of which, Hazuki-kun—”

“It’s _Na-gi-sa_!”

“—Hazuki-kun,” Rei said again, ignoring the blond, “you should really eat healthier meals as well. Although your metabolism is keeping up with your daily intake of food now, once you become older, that will no longer be the case.” _Not to mention that the quality of your meat will be ruined if you keep eating such distasteful meals…_

“Don’t sweat the small stuff, Rei-chan! You gotta live while you’re still young, y’know? And I don’t plan on dying any time soon, so I’ve still got my entire life ahead of me! It’s nice of you to worry about me though.” He giggled.

“Hmm,” Rei hummed without saying anything and continued watching him eat.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The entire time I watched _Tokyo Ghoul_ , I couldn’t help but be very concerned about the blood stains that the characters kept getting on their clothes. Also, I might have had a little too much fun creating a “rip-off” restaurant name for this chapter.
> 
> In other news, I finished reading _Parasyte_ ’s manga and caught up with its episodes in about 2 weeks. I like the anime way more than the manga, mainly because of the fact that they completely redrafted the character designs and modernized it, but also because Shimazaki Nobunaga-san voices the main character. Hearing Shinichi freak out is like listening to an extremely emotive Haruka. Lol
> 
> (My commissions are open! For more information, [please see here](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/commissions).)
> 
> Also on [Tumblr](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/post/113228581063/the-taste-of-rust-chapter-2-rei-nagisa).

Rei clicked his tongue disdainfully at the large, dark stain on his shirt. Even after putting detergent on it and scrubbing, it refused to wash out. He really should have been more careful when he applied the finishing blow to his meal but she had gotten a little too excited and tried to lash out at him at the last second. Now he had a bloody handprint smeared across the front of his shirt.

She hadn’t been very delicious either, for the amount of work he had to put in to subdue her. Once he realized she was a screamer, he had to take out her vocal cords, but things became even more chaotic after that. Rei sighed. At least he wouldn’t have to hunt again for another two or three weeks. And it wasn’t much, but he supposed it was a plus that his pants were dark so the stains wouldn’t really show.

He shook his head and poured the pink water from the basin before refilling it. This was exactly why he hated prey that struggled. They always made such a mess.

From his cabinet, he took out some stain remover and poured it into the basin. He swished the water around until it frothed.

His phone vibrated from the top of the toilet bowl where he had left it. Rei was able to catch a glimpse of the message before his screen went back to sleep. It was from Nagisa.

Carefully, he balanced the basin on the side of the sink, washed his hands with soap, and dried them off on a clean towel. He unlocked his phone and read the text.

> **_Hey, Rei-chan!! Are you busy tonight? I’m supposed to be working on a paper, but I reaaally don’t want write it. >_< Do you wanna go somewhere and grab some coffee? I’ll bring my laptop too, so you can guilt-trip me into working on it or something. Lol_ **

He glanced at his clothing, which was bobbing listlessly in the sudsy water. Rei supposed there was nothing more he could do except wait and let his clothes soak for a while.

His fingers hovered over the keyboard on his phone’s screen.

> _Sure. I just ate dinner earlier so I don’t think I’ll be eating anything, but I don’t have any plans for tonight._

> **_Awesome! Then how does going to I-HAP sound? It’s not too far from your place right? We can probably bike there separately._ **

> _That sounds fine. I’d like to take a shower before I go though._

****

> **_Oh yeah, no prob. How does meeting there in an hour sound?_**

> _That’s good. I’ll see you then._  
> 

> **_Okay! Later~! ^_^_ **

He locked his phone and replaced it on the toilet bowl. It was really far too easy. He didn’t even have to exert any energy in stringing Nagisa along, since he kept stringing _himself_ along all the time.

For the past few weeks, the blond had been chatting with him and asking to hang out once every couple of days. If Nagisa hadn’t originally been a target for him, Rei would have undoubtedly gotten rid of him just so that he wouldn’t have to deal with such an annoyance all the time, but the shorter man’s obvious persistence and advances only made things simpler for him. Just thinking about how devastated Nagisa would be when it was finally time to eat him made Rei feel excited.

Having quick, impromptu targets as a staple was fine, but there was something very special about betraying a trusted “friend” that made the meal taste even more delicious.

Out of the corner of his eye, Rei caught a glimpse of the deranged smile he had unconsciously let slip onto his features. Quickly, he blanked his face and shook his head. He rarely ever let his emotions get this out of hand. He had to be more careful.

He chastised himself silently and moved the basin to the toilet lid so that the sink was clear. Rei bared his teeth to inspect them. There were slight blood stains visible, so he grabbed his toothbrush. He’d have to hurry and get ready. Although it didn’t seem likely that Nagisa would mind if he arrived late, it was still better to be early. It would help further improve his image with the blond, at the very least.

Things were going so well already. It would only be a matter of time before things tipped all the way in his favor. Rei almost couldn’t wait for it to happen.

 

* * *

 

“Sorry I’m late,” Nagisa gasped as he jogged past Rei and slid onto the bench across from him. His hair was tousled, and his cheeks were slightly flushed. He grinned happily at Rei.

Rei returned his smile with a much smaller one of his own. “It’s no problem. I wasn’t waiting for long anyway. I haven’t ordered yet, so do you want a second with the menu first?”

The blond shook his head and ran a hand through his bangs to get them to settle down. “Nah, I always get the drink bar and dessert combo when I come here for a late-night snack.” He reached over the table and pressed the button for service. A gentle ding chimed through the room, and an electronic board on the far side of the restaurant flashed their table number on it.

It wasn’t long before a waiter stopped by their table and took their orders—a single all-you-can-drink order for Rei and an all-you-can-drink and dessert combo for Nagisa.

“Thank you very much. Your dessert will be out shortly, so please feel free to get your drinks now,” the waiter said with a smile.

Nagisa nodded. “Thanks!” He turned his attention to Rei. “C’mon, Rei-chan.”

After they both arrived at the counter where all the drinks were laid out, the blond picked out a cup and immediately pressed the button on the machine for hot cocoa.

“So,” he said while he waited, “what were you doing before I texted you anyway?”

Rei fixed his glasses. “I was washing out my shirt since I had gotten a stain on it.”

“No way!” Nagisa laughed, “You, getting a stain on your stuff? You seem like the kind of guy who’s always super careful with his clothing and whatever.” The machine spluttered to a stop, and Nagisa picked his drink up.

The taller man put his cup beneath the dispenser and chose the hot coffee option. While the machine choked and sputtered in preparation, he sniffed delicately. “I am, but accidents happen to even the most careful of people.”

“True that,” he mused. Nagisa brought the cup to his mouth and blew on the liquid very gently.

With nothing better to do, Rei watched as the blond pressed the cup’s edge against his lower lip and tentatively took a light slurp of the hot cocoa. His eyelashes were thick and fanned out as he carefully watched his cup while drinking.

The machine stopped dripping, and Rei retrieved his beverage promptly. “How is it?” he asked off-handedly while reaching for a saucer.

“Well, it’s from a drink bar in a chain restaurant, so,” he smiled, leaving Rei to complete the rest of his sentence. He started heading back to their seats, and Rei followed.

Nagisa’s dessert was already waiting for them at the table, so while the shorter man began eating it, Rei drank some of his coffee. Between mouthfuls of ice cream and cake, Nagisa asked him, “Is it good?”

“Well,” he said slyly, “it’s a from a drink bar in a chain restaurant, so.”

His response made Nagisa laugh and his eyes sparkle. “How do you manage to sleep when you drink so much coffee anyway?”

Rei wetted his lips and sipped his coffee again, his eyes still subtly trained on the other man. “You get used to the caffeine after a while.”

“Yeah, but that much?”

“I like the taste of it. It’s the only thing I allow myself to indulge on.” He smiled faintly.

The blond licked the back of his spoon absentmindedly to get the cream off it and leaned his elbows on the table. His eyes were soft as he gazed at Rei. “It’s nice to see you smile,” he said simply.

“Oh?” he said, feigning slight surprise. To himself, he thought, _So he_ has _noticed…._

“Yeah. When we first met, you didn’t smile at all! I almost thought you didn’t know how to.”

With some effort, Rei warmed his features and gave Nagisa an indulgent smile. “Is that so? How about now then?”

It was almost imperceptible how Nagisa’s cheeks flushed, but Rei could smell the blood which rose to the surface of his skin.

“You still don’t do it a whole lot, but it’s better than before,” he said.

Rei put his cup of coffee down and laughed softly through his nose. “So what is your essay on?”

Nagisa started poking at his cake. “Ummm. The usual, I guess. I mean, it’s not really anything that interesting, but we’re focusing on the wars that happened….”

The entire time he spoke, Rei attentively listened, nodding and humming at the right times to let Nagisa know that he was still paying attention. Their waiter came back to take Nagisa’s plate, they got refills of their drinks, and the blond finally took out his laptop to work on his essay.

They chatted sporadically as Nagisa wrote and read his reference books, and Rei casually perused his own textbooks. Since it was so late, the restaurant was relatively quiet, except for the occasional loud laugh from some other patrons on the other side of the room. The calm atmosphere between them was comfortable and nice.

After working on his paper for a long time, Nagisa leaned back with a heavy groan and kicked his legs out to stretch.

“I’m sooo tired!” he complained as he slouched.

Rei frowned at his poor posture. “Sit up straight or you’ll ruin your back,” he scolded.

“Nooo,” Nagisa whined, sighing loudly and sliding even lower on the bench. Strands of his hair hitched up on the back of the seat as he pouted. His shoe accidentally bumped up against the side of Rei’s, and he stilled.

At the soft pressure against his foot, Rei’s eyes darted quickly toward the table, as if he were able to see through it. Except for his right eye, most of Nagisa’s face was hidden by his laptop because of how far he had slid down, but the light blush on his cheeks was still visible. He was testing Rei. Or rather, he was testing his relationship with Rei.

He nudged his foot ever-so-slightly back against Nagisa’s to indicate that he was perfectly aware at their point of contact.

“You should get back to your paper,” Rei said quietly.

“Yeah,” Nagisa replied softly. His teeth peeked from his lips as he grinned boldly and pushed his shoe a little harder against Rei’s. He bit his lower lip and shifted his foot so that their ankles brushed.

Rei’s pulse quickened at the seemingly innocent but intimate gesture, and he smirked. His legs were long, so it was easy to rub the side of his shin against the blond’s without any effort. Rei was wearing pants but the blond only had shorts on, so their warmth mingled easily through the thin fabric. Nagisa’s smile faltered momentarily, and Rei saw him swallow hard.

Pretending that nothing had happened, Rei pulled back his leg and picked up his empty coffee cup. “I’m going to get some more,” he announced.

“Yeah,” the shorter man said again, still not sitting up. It looked like he couldn’t stop grinning.

Rei stood from the table and made his way to the drink bar. When he discreetly looked back, he saw Nagisa furiously rubbing his cheeks.

 

* * *

 

The air was cool when they stepped outside. Nagisa’s laptop had run out of battery, and they were both more than ready to go home by then.

The shorter man stretched his arms up and cracked his back casually. Once he was done, he sighed happily and looked over to Rei. “Thanks for coming out here with me. You really helped me keep on track.”

“Of course,” he said nonchalantly while going toward his bike. “Like I said, it wasn’t as if I had any other plans for tonight. And besides,” Rei pointedly paused and glanced at Nagisa, “supporting each other is what friends do, right?” He watched as Nagisa grinned, and he walked on ahead again. Rei pulled out his key and went toward his bike.

They both finished unlocking their bicycles around the same time and walked down the ramp which led to the sidewalk together.

The shorter man hopped on his bike first. Its chain clicked furiously as he kicked the pedal back and rested his foot on it. “Well, I’ll see you around! Thanks again for tonight.”

“Yes. I’ll see you later. Get home safely, Nagisa-kun,” he said.

For a moment, the blond gaped at him incredulously.

Rei smiled mysteriously. “Is something the matter?”

“Right now, you just—I—” he stammered. His eyes were wide in disbelief.

 _That’s right_ , Rei thought, _I just called you by your given name._

Nagisa grinned widely and shook his head. “It’s nothing. Good night, Rei-chan.”

He raised a hand and waved slightly. “Good night.”

The blond kicked off and started pedaling away.

Rei pressed his fingers lightly against his lips as to hide the genuine smile that made its way there. He narrowed his eyes.

 

* * *

 

Rei discreetly peered around the corner of the bookshelf. Since it was almost time for the library to close, there weren’t a lot of people left in the building but he had been trailing someone and waiting for the perfect time to “accidentally” run into them.

He adjusted his glasses and casually walked down the row, trailing his eyes over the book spines. All the while, he was carefully watching the only other person in the aisle and predicting what book they would take next. At the exact same time they reached out for a title, Rei placed his hand on it too.

There was a moment of quiet shock, a murmured apology, and then a pair of widened pink eyes stared into his.

“Rei-chan?” Nagisa whispered in surprise.

The taller man lifted his eyebrows. “Nagisa-kun.”

As usual, the blond’s lips curved up naturally. “I didn’t expect to run into you here,” he said.

Rei gave Nagisa the warmest and most “melted” smile he could muster. He had practiced a lot in front of a mirror to achieve the effect and, even though he thought it made him look like a fool, Rei found that smiling at people like that in private was one of the quickest ways to make them drop their guard and fall for him. Judging from the way Nagisa’s eyes stilled and seemed to drown in his gaze, it was working very well.

“Me neither. The library’s quite big, after all,” Rei said. He glanced back to the Japanese history book they had both gone for and plucked it off the shelf. “Did you need this?”

“Oh,” the shorter man said, looking at it. “Sort of. But if you need it—”

“No,” he replied easily. “I just became interested in this topic, since you were writing your paper on it the other day. I thought it would be nice to do some recreational reading on the topic.”

Nagisa laughed softly. “My paper was super boring though!”

“On the contrary,” Rei said, “You were speaking so enthusiastically about it that I couldn’t help but be intrigued by it.”

The shorter man brushed his bangs out of his eyes just so that he could hide his face. “Rei-chan, you always say such weird, cheesy things like that,” he muttered.

“Sorry,” he apologized, his pulse racing a little at how well his whole plan was working, “Does it make you uncomfortable?”

Nagisa peeked up at him and shook his head slightly. “No….”

He smiled at the blond again and dropped the topic. “It’s still early, so I was thinking about getting some coffee before heading back home. Would you like to join me?”

“Sure.”

“Let’s take this too then,” Rei said, holding up the book again.

Nagisa nodded and grabbed two or three other books he had left on the shelf before Rei stopped by. They made their way to the front desk and chatted lightly while getting everything checked out.

“I didn’t bring my bike today,” Nagisa said as they headed outside. There was still some sunlight, but the sky was already getting dark.

“That’s fine,” the taller man said. “I don’t have mine either, so we can walk together.” It was a lie. He glanced quickly at bike parking spaces right next to the library’s entrance. There were a few other bicycles there too, so his blended in with the rest.

“Okay.” Nagisa pulled the strap of his side-bag and started going down the steps. “What a coincidence that we’d both be here at the same time though.”

“Maybe it’s fate,” Rei said casually.

The shorter man looked up at him and chuckled. “You believe in that kinda thing?”

“Perhaps. Sometimes, sudden meetings occur and create such interesting results that one can’t help but wonder if it’s not.”

“Hmm, that’s pretty deep stuff, Rei-chan.” Nagisa was walking a few steps in front of him with his hands laced behind his back. The gravel beneath their feet crunched rhythmically. “But I like to think that way too.”

 _Ah, here it comes_ , Rei thought. Aloud, he gently asked, “What do you mean by that?”

“Well, for example—and don’t get all weirded out or anything—but that day when you helped me pick up my papers? That wasn’t actually the first time I saw you.

“I’ve been to that coffee shop we went to a few times before, and I kept seeing you sitting in the same corner. You always looked so lonely reading a book by yourself that it kind of made me feel lonely too.” He pressed his fingers against his chest, right over his heart, and turned just enough to let Rei see part of his face.

“So I thought that I would try and be friends with you. That’s what I kept thinking, but I never mustered up the courage to just go up to you out of the blue, so that windy day was a really lucky break for me. I did finally get to befriend you, and now we get to hang out so much too. I’m really glad because of that.”

Nagisa clenched his fist over his chest and took in a deep breath. He glanced at Rei out of the corner of his eye and looked away again. “Sometimes, it feels like fate that we were able to meet and become so close.”

“Nagisa-kun….” Rei had caught up with the blond and gingerly placed his hand on the juncture of Nagisa’s neck and jaw. Beneath his palm and fingers, Rei could feel the thrumming beat of his racing pulse.

Slowly, he tilted his head and leaned down. Nagisa’s eyes were wide as he neared, but then they shut softly. Rei pressed their lips together and moved very slightly to make them fit better. He could feel the hitch in Nagisa’s breath as they kissed. A damp warmth settled in his empty hand’s palm, and he realized that the shorter man had reached out to hold his hand. He curled his fingers to reciprocate the gesture.

Nagisa opened his mouth and pressed himself closer to Rei.

The taller man deepened their kiss, and his heart beat faster in excitement.

 _Too easy_.

Nagisa’s mouth was hot and wet and so, so delicious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Completely unrelated to anything, but it really bothers me that every time I have an even number of _Free!_ fics published, my overall fic count here is odd. However, when I have an odd number of _Free!_ fics out, my overall fic count is even....


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After catching up with _Parasyte_ , I watched _Death Parade_. It's super great, omg. I _sobbed_ through the 2nd-4th episodes. ;;n;; The OP is awesome. And then I caught up with _Steven Universe_ (I cried a few times in S1) and finished _Over the Garden Wall_ (This one is so good too!). I'll start _Gravity Falls_ now!
> 
> Anyway, this chapter was really hard to write. I kept dragging my feet and trying to put it off for the longest time.... Many thanks to [Matcha](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Matcha) for beta-reading!
> 
> (My commissions are open! For more information, [please see here](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/commissions).)
> 
> Also on [Tumblr](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/post/113900501473/taste-of-rust-rei-nagisa-nsfw).

Nagisa was lying on his futon with Rei leaning over him. Both of them had taken off their shirts and pants, so they were left with only their boxers on. Rei thought that the blond looked wonderful lying beneath him with his wavy hair spread out over his own pillow. It was as if Nagisa were a beautiful feast laid out just for him.

The blond seemed to be trembling slightly, and his breathing was mildly elevated. They hadn’t started doing anything yet, but Nagisa’s face was already pink. Since it was their first time doing this, Rei supposed it was natural that the blond would be a bit nervous.

Rei stroked his face softly and leaned down. Nagisa willingly tilted his chin up and met him for a kiss. The blond ran his fingers through his hair and moaned into his mouth as Rei kissed him slowly and deeply.

His hands moved down to the blond’s chest, and he started to rub his thumbs over his nipples firmly. Nagisa sucked in a deep breath and arched his back. The taller man smiled and moved down to kiss his pulse right beneath his jaw. Rei shuddered as he sampled Nagisa’s unique flavor. It was just as luscious as he imagined.

The skin there was so thin and delicate that he could practically taste the sweetness of Nagisa’s blood. Rei sucked hard. The blond moaned and turned his head so that he would have more access. A faint red mark remained after he removed his lips. He attentively swiped his tongue over it and nibbled lightly down Nagisa’s neck.

“Ah… Rei-chan—mngh!”

Without warning, Rei ground down on Nagisa. He straightened up so that he could properly see the shorter man come undone before him. Nagisa was gazing up at him hazily as he continuously thrust his own hips up to get more friction between them. The sound of cloth rubbing together filled the room along with Nagisa’s harsh panting and Rei’s carefully maintained breaths.

Nagisa was shamelessly dragging his gaze over Rei’s toned body as they ground against each other. It wouldn’t have been inappropriate to call his gaze “hungry,” though Rei was the one who felt the thrum of actual predation mingling with his sense of lust. The blond was watching him so intensely and openly that he couldn’t help his breath from quickening.

“Were you lying to me when you said you weren’t a hardcore athlete, Rei-chan?” Nagisa panted while running his palms warmly over Rei’s toned thighs. He rested them on Rei’s hips and gripped them as he eagerly bucked up. “You look really fucking hot.”

He laughed breathlessly without answering and ground down hard, drawing out a long moan from his partner.

He licked his lips and pushed his tongue into Nagisa’s mouth. Judging from the thick groans which spilled from him, the blond had no complaints about his actions whatsoever. Nagisa dug his nails into Rei’s back and dragged them over his shoulder blades lightly.

When he smoothed his hands down the blond’s side, Nagisa shivered. Rei’s thumbs caught on the elastic hem of Nagisa’s boxers and pulled them down. His partner was more than happy to help him by squirming and wriggling delightedly. When Rei drew back from the kiss, Nagisa’s cheeks and lips were flushed, and his eyes shone with a glassy dewiness which made him shiver in excitement.

Without another word, the taller man moved down Nagisa’s body attentively, sucking and kissing along random spots. He trailed his hands over the shorter man’s smooth shoulders, down his chest, and over his slightly muscled stomach. Nagisa told him that he used to swim back in high school, but since entering university, he hadn’t been able to exercise as much. The signs of his vigorous training were still visible though. Nagisa was nicely toned, and he had just the right amount of body fat on him.

The parts Rei was most interested in, however, were Nagisa’s thighs and calves. As a prior breaststroke swimmer, the blond’s chest and legs were the firmest muscles on his body. Though this would generally mean that the flesh would be very tough, Nagisa’s recent lack of regular exercise had already started to soften the meat into a juicy tenderness. His eyes and hands traced the delicate lines which defined Nagisa’s muscles into appetizing sections.

Rei kept moving until he was settled between the blond’s spread legs. While he had been going down, Nagisa had propped himself up on his elbows to watch him. His pink eyes had dissolved into a dark shade of lust as he watched Rei hover over his stiff cock.

Rei maintained eye contact with him as he languidly stroked his fingertips against his hot skin to tease him. Nagisa’s throat bobbed, and his thighs shifted as he opened his legs further in invitation. Rei took a long, steadying breath and swallowed him whole.

A sharp cry tore through the air and melted wantonly. Delicious bitterness smeared across his tongue as Nagisa unintentionally thrust his hips and drove his length deeper into his mouth, but Rei simply relaxed his throat and swallowed around him. His hands rested strongly on the shorter man’s thighs and squeezed. The quality of their firmness felt perfect beneath his palms.

Nagisa smelled good. He could feel the blond throbbing against his tongue as he sank down all the way and regulated his breathing. The thick smell of his musk mingled with the subtle scent of blood right beneath Nagisa’s skin. Rei felt himself get light-headed as excitement coursed through him. Without consciously meaning to, he moaned as he pulled back up.

“Rei—chan, Rei-chan, you’re so—good! Fuck, oh my god—” he panted harshly. His fingers curled into Rei’s dark hair and pulled. He choked on his words while Rei let him fuck his mouth.

There was nothing quite like being able to reduce someone to mindless whimpering and panting, and it turned Rei on so much. Nagisa was shallowly thrusting into him as he bobbed his head. The blond’s hard cock felt good against his tongue and lips.

He kept casually sucking on Nagisa while uncapping the lube that the blond had handed him earlier. After warming up the slickness he poured out, he pressed his fingertips against Nagisa’s hole. He hardly gave the shorter man any time to register what was happening before he pressed two fingers into him and began stroking his insides. Nagisa let out an incoherent groan and fell back on the futon. His knees quivered, as if they wanted to close because of the sudden intrusions, but Rei pushed his palm against his trembling thighs to stop him. When he looked up, the shorter man had covered his face and was whining loudly.

Nagisa’s breathing became increasingly ragged as Rei continued to swallow and suck around him. When he pressed a third finger into the blond’s stretched hole, Nagisa let out a wrecked moan and pulled at his own hair. His hips bucked up slightly, and Rei felt Nagisa squeeze around him.

Smiling internally, he curled his fingers harder against Nagisa’s sweet spot. After one last suck, he slowly pulled off the blond. Any more than this and he would cum.

Nagisa groaned, but there was nothing he could do. His stomach heaved as he watched Rei sit up.

“Did that feel good, Nagisa-kun?” he asked coarsely. His voice had become rough and gravelly after deep-throating the blond for so long. Rei cleared his throat and licked the corner of his lips.

His partner smiled and nodded.  Rei slipped his fingers out of him and picked up a small condom packet from the floor. Nagisa watched him while he opened it and rolled it on himself slowly. The blond’s eyes were trained on him as Rei stroked himself with lubricant.

Nagisa spread his legs more for him and grinned at him expectantly. Rei nudged the head of his cock against him and moved his hips gently to tease him. He leaned down, and the shorter man held onto him again.

“Eager, aren’t you?” Rei asked as he stared into Nagisa’s eyes. They were blown wide with arousal and trust.

The blond lifted his hips up to encourage Rei and laughed. He shook his bangs out of his eyes and licked his lips. “What? To get fucked by that perfect cock of yours? Who wouldn’t be?” Nagisa dragged him down for a deep kiss and bucked up again.

Rei groaned and pushed forward. Nagisa opened up for him and he slid in all the way smoothly.

“Unnngh! Holy _shit_ , you’re big—Ah!” He whined and clawed at Rei’s back as he was filled up.

Even though he had properly stretched Nagisa out, with how much the blond was clenching around him and squirming, it was as if he pushed in without any preparations. Nagisa was digging his nails into his back and gasping against his mouth desperately, which only added to the lewdness of the entire situation. Rei could feel how hot Nagisa was even with the condom on. His head spun just thinking about how much more incredible it would be if they didn’t use one.

He panted and half-laughed at the overwhelming feeling of being so deep in the shorter man. Rei pressed his forehead against Nagisa’s and carefully watched his expression. “You’re so hot and tight….”

“Reeei-chan!” he whined needily. His eyebrows were furrowed tightly, and he looked so wonderfully wrecked already.

The taller man moved his lips down to his neck and chest again, where he began sucking and biting with his tongue and teeth. In the time that it took Nagisa to get used to the sensation of being stretched apart, Rei had littered his skin with red blemishes.

Nagisa’s shoulder sported teeth indentations and his neck was peppered with round kiss marks by the time he was done. Rei hadn’t broken his skin, but drawing the blood so close to the surface was like teasing himself with a preview of what he would soon be able to taste. The adrenaline and lust which laced the blond’s blood made its scent even more mouthwatering.

He became aware that his predatory instincts were beginning to get a little out of hand. Rei was glad he had pressed his face against Nagisa’s neck, because his sclera had turned black and his irises red in his excitement. Quietly, he breathed in and closed his eyes. It was a bit difficult to calm down, especially since he was still shoved deep inside of Nagisa and the blond smelled so _delicious_.

“Rei-cha—”

Before the shorter man even had the time to finish the rest of his sentence, Rei had pulled his hips back all the way and slammed into Nagisa hard.

The action was so abrupt that Nagisa cried out loudly and clung onto him desperately. He began to whimper and squeeze around him each time Rei dragged his cock out and forced it back into him. The pace he set was fast and brutal, but the blond didn’t seem to mind at all. Rather, judging from how much he was groaning and keening, he was enjoying it tremendously.

Rei growled and moved back so that he could press their lips together. He pushed his tongue deeply into Nagisa’s mouth and drank in his moans.

The slutty way the shorter man was taking his cock and tongue made him feel so aroused. His senses became even more heightened than usual, and the visceral drag of Nagisa’s pulse in his veins sounded almost as loud as the wet noises of their fucking to him.

“Ah, ah, s’ _good_ , Rei-cha—ahn!” Nagisa could barely string together any coherent words, but just listening to him come apart was more than enough for Rei.

He sat up, gripped Nagisa’s hips firmly, and hitched his lower body off the futon. Nagisa helped by wrapping his legs around Rei’s waist. The blond’s eyes were screwed shut as Rei readjusted himself and continued thrusting at _just_ the right angle. It was such an abrupt gesture that Nagisa’s moan turned silent halfway through, and he arched back hard. Rei watched as a long dribble of precum dripped from the shorter man’s cock and wetted his stomach. He didn’t give Nagisa any time to prepare himself as he kept plunging in nonstop.

Rei took Nagisa in his hand and squeezed tightly. He was rewarded when the blond’s muscles fluttered around his cock. The heat was almost unbearable, and the wet friction ramped up his excitement. He was getting really close.

His breathing became harsher as he continued abusing Nagisa’s sweet spot and milked precum out of him. The blond lay there, flushed and sweating while Rei pounded into him mercilessly. His hands were gripping into his bed sheets hard, as if trying to ground himself in some way. From the way he was shaking and crying out, Rei knew Nagisa was completely at the mercy of his actions. He had forfeited himself to Rei, and the mere knowledge of that made him feel drunk and heady.

Nagisa’s pink eyes peeked at him blearily. “M-More, Rei—chan,” he panted with red, wet lips. His cock twitched hard in Rei’s hand, and he shuddered violently. “I’m so close. I wanna cum so bad, nngh…!”

Rei’s cock throbbed at the enticing words, and he quickened his pace even more.

Their fucking was so slick and sloppy. Nagisa’s precum leaked steadily from his dick, shamelessly coating Rei’s fingers and dripping onto his own stomach. The squelching noises of him getting jerked off were a good match to the sharp smacking of Rei’s cock in his ass.

Everything was so unbelievably hot. The blond was thick and heavy against his palm, he was throbbing in Nagisa’s tightness, and the steady build of pleasure pulsed through his body strongly. Rei started shaking too as the tension of orgasm crept up on him. His breathing was reduced to quick, desperate gasps, and he was covered in sweat.

“Fu… Fuck— _shit_ ,” he cursed and moved his hand faster on Nagisa. He wanted to watch the blond come completely undone before him and utterly lose himself.

Rei moved his gaze between Nagisa’s legs. The blond’s dick was shining with precum and lubricant as he fucked into the tight circle Rei had made with his fist. His cock was stretching Nagisa’s hole to breaking as well. It was so pink and wet, and it just kept eating him up. His eyes darted back up.

Nagisa looked absolutely wrecked. His expression was so desperate and wanton, and the dark marks on his skin made it obvious that he belonged to someone. He was Rei’s.

Rei’s food, Rei’s fucktoy, Rei’s plaything—every part of him was Rei’s.

“You’re _mine_ , Nagisa-kun,” he growled as he thrust up especially hard and squeezed his hand around him.

The blond let out a sharp whine and moaned. He nodded blindly. “Yes—fuck! God, I’m all yours, I’m all fucking yours, Rei-chan! Haa—aah! Ah!”

Nagisa came hard. White cum shot out from his cock, and Rei continued milking it out of him. Thick streaks of it spilled over his stomach and chest. The blond cried out in time with his convulsions, and his muscles clenched around Rei as he peaked. His face was so erotic. Rei leaned over him and pushed their mouths together.

Within seconds, the thick coil of ecstasy in Rei’s stomach snapped as well, and he crammed himself as deeply as he could into Nagisa’s ass. His thighs shook as he moaned and released everything into the condom. Heat and euphoria wracked his body. His heartbeat thudded frantically in his chest and cock as he emptied himself completely.

He almost forgot to breathe as he jerkily thrust in and out of the blond as he came. The tiny whimpers Nagisa let out while he continued getting fucked sounded so pathetic, and they only turned him on even more. It felt good to know that Nagisa was completely relinquishing himself to him. The blond obediently lay there and milked him dry by squeezing around him tightly. Their mouths were wet with saliva, which had begun to smear across their chins as they lost themselves.

It took a while for him to let out the last dribbles of pleasure and catch his breath. Nagisa looked mildly dazed as he gazed at him. His cock was still twitching on his wet stomach. They kissed a few more times softly between breaths. Once things got a little too warm for their comforts, they moved back.

With a grunt, Rei pulled out. It felt almost disappointing to have to separate from the blond. Shakily, he took off the condom. It had been a long time since he came so hard, and his body still tingled from the aftershocks of his orgasm.

Rei was a little unsteady as he stood up to throw the condom away, and by the time he had returned, Nagisa had used one of their shirts to wipe the cum off himself. He still looked absolutely ruined though. The second Rei lay down on the small futon, the blond rolled on him and straddled him. Nagisa was kissing him deeply and nipping on his lips before he had the time to figure out what was happening. His hands settled naturally on the blond’s hips as they made out.

“That was,” the shorter man said as he kissed him, “really fucking hot.” He ran his hand roughly through Rei’s hair and crushed their lips together again. Rei shivered when Nagisa sucked on his tongue. “You practically ate me alive. Who would’ve thought that you could be so possessive in bed?” he asked before pushing his tongue into Rei’s mouth.

The irony of Nagisa’s words almost made Rei laugh, but he just growled instead. The blond drew back when he pinched him on the hip. “I can get pretty jealous outside of the bedroom too,” he said in a low voice. His eyes flashed, and he spread his hands over Nagisa’s bare cheeks.

“Unngh—Yeah, I can get used to that,” his partner moaned loudly when he squeezed his ass firmly.

They continued kiss and pet each other until Nagisa got too sleepy and flopped down on his side. He curled up against Rei and threw an arm over his waist. Rei obligingly readjusted his arms so that they were loosely cuddling.

“G’night, Rei-chan…” Nagisa slurred out, already half-asleep.

The taller man grunted a response and got into a more comfortable position. He pressed his face into the blond’s hair. The smell of sweat and his natural scent mingled together nicely. It was an unexpectedly comforting smell.

Nagisa had smelled nothing short of delicious when they were fucking, but now that Rei had calmed down, it was a completely different story. He breathed in deeply. This was probably a scent he could get addicted to, if he wasn’t already. Instinctively, he tightened his hold on Nagisa’s form and drew him closer.

Rei fell asleep with the sweet smell surrounding him, and slow strands of possessiveness began to twine their way around his limbs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After leaving Tumblr and Twitter, I no longer have an online space to talk about things, which is why my A/Ns are so freakin' long now. Sorry about that. uwu;;


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god, I just finished _Death Parade_ , and I was sobbing on and off for the entire episode. ='C I wanna watch it again already.... What a great anime!
> 
> Anyway, thanks to [Matcha](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Matcha) again for beta-reading!
> 
> (My commissions are open! For more information, [please see here](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/commissions).)
> 
> Also on [Tumblr](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/post/114785550088/the-taste-of-rust-chapter-4-rei-nagisa).

The next morning, Rei woke up groggily with a face full of hair. Instinctively, he frowned and tried to back away from the strands which kept tickling him. Nagisa whimpered petulantly in his sleep and snuggled closer to him. He nuzzled his head against Rei’s chest until the taller man stopped moving.

That was when he remembered that he was lying in Nagisa’s futon and that the blond was still in his arms. Rei breathed in his scent and an odd sense of calm settled over him.

Nagisa inhaled deeply and exhaled against his bare skin. There was a moment of stillness between them, and then Rei felt soft lips pressing up against his chest and collarbones. The warm fingers which had been carelessly draped across his hips the night before massaged him sensually.

“Mmngh, Rei-chan….”

In practiced reciprocation, Rei tightened his arms around the shorter man and kissed the top of his head. He made sure that he had a soft smile on his face before he pulled back and looked down.

“Good morning, Nagisa-kun,” he said in a low voice.

The blond snuggled closer to him and murmured something that sounded vaguely like a morning greeting. Rei felt him twine their legs together beneath the blankets.

Mechanically, he traced his fingers up and down the line of Nagisa’s back. The blond wriggled in slight ticklishness, giggled, and buried his face into Rei’s chest happily. Gently, he moved his hand up to the shorter man’s hair and played with the messy strands. Nagisa let out tiny noises of content which made it sound like he was purring.

Nagisa took in another deep breath and stretched lazily, his body shaking with the exertion. Once he was done, he let his limbs flop down on Rei. Finally, after being vaguely awake for so long, Nagisa looked up and opened his eyes sleepily.

A wide grin broke across his face, and he snorted in laughter.

Rei felt somewhat offended that Nagisa’s first reaction upon seeing his face was to laugh. “What?” he asked with a slight frown.

“Your bedhead is super crazy right now,” he responded.

His frown deepened, and Rei yanked a little harder on Nagisa’s hair. “Yours is just as bad, Nagisa-kun. It’s sticking up everywhere.”

“Hmmm, really?” he asked playfully while shaking his head. He ducked down again and nuzzled his chest firmly.

“Nagisa-kun!” Rei scolded and tried to move away, but the blond only laughed and grabbed onto him tighter.

After a second of struggling, he gave up and stayed still. Nagisa stopped shortly afterwards too. Both of their breaths were quickened because of the sudden bout of wrestling, but they were still comfortable.

“Well,” the shorter man said, “I guess it can’t be helped, because of what we were doing last night.”

Rei could feel Nagisa’s smile on his skin. He hummed in response.

The two of them remained like that for another handful of minutes until Rei figured that was enough cuddling for the morning. He let out a loud groan as he started untangling himself from Nagisa as if he was loath to do it.

“Nooo, Reeei-chan….” The shorter man whined and clung onto him tighter.

A second of distaste flickered over his face, but he quickly wiped it away. He sighed and stroked the blond on the head again. “Come on, Nagisa-kun. Let me go.”

“I wanna cuddle more though,” he pouted, peeking up at him and tilting his head against the pillow appealingly. Rei had to admit that he did look rather delicious in such a vulnerable position, but he was completely done with the whole intimacy thing for now.

Carefully, he maintained a smile and kissed Nagisa deeply. “I think you want to eat more than you want to cuddle right now, don’t you?” he murmured against his lips wetly.

Just at that moment, Nagisa’s stomach growled. Dramatically, the shorter man let go of Rei and flopped onto his back. “I’m a traitor to my own stomach!” he sighed loudly with a defeated air.

Rei took the opportunity to quickly roll out from the blankets and put on his glasses. “I’ll go make us breakfast,” he said. “I’ll get you when I’m done.”

Nagisa grinned at him from the futon. “Awesome sex _and_ breakfast the next morning? Rei-chan, you’re the best boyfriend ever.”

“Naturally,” he said immodestly while looking for his boxers.

The blond rolled onto his stomach and leaned against his pillow. His eyes carefully followed Rei’s every move, but they were especially interested in his ass. “You’re not gonna cook for me while only wearing an apron?”

“That’s very impractical and unhygienic,” he said evenly and pulled on his boxers and pants. Once he slipped on a shirt, he shuffled over to the futon again. “I’ll be right back,” he said, and gave Nagisa another brief kiss.

“Mmkay,” the shorter man said and smiled. He closed his eyes and shoved his face back into his pillow.

Rei let out a silent sigh once he was outside of the bedroom. Cuddling and pretending to be soft and intimate with human partners was exhausting. Obviously, some partners were easier to deal with than others, but in the end, it was still a chore. Unfortunately for him, Rei didn’t believe in doing things halfway, so if he had decided on earning a human’s trust for the sake of betraying them, he would go all out to make sure he won over them fully.

At least Nagisa was a good fuck and seemed especially delicious.

He fixed his glasses and headed toward the small kitchen. The previous times Rei had been over at Nagisa’s apartment, he had been alarmed to see that the blond’s refrigerator and cabinets were nearly as empty as his own. Considering that Rei only stocked a variety of coffee products for himself, Nagisa’s bare-bone food supplies were quite a wonder.

Since he was investing so much time and energy into Nagisa as his next meal, it was wholly in his interest to make sure that the shorter man’s diet was also well-maintained. It was only after several days of persistent scolding that the blond even started to buy food for himself. Most of it was still instant and packaged goods, but it was a start.

He opened up the fridge and looked around the mostly empty shelves. There was a small carton of eggs and some bacon, so he took those out. Nagisa didn’t seem to have any bread, but at least he had coffee. He started gathering the right utensils to start cooking.

Although he couldn’t taste the food that he made, Rei had made a point of learning how to prepare human food, so he could further blend into society. Despite how much he disliked humans, Rei had an insatiable thirst for knowledge, and the only way he would be able to further his learning was by integrating into the realm he despised so much. Besides that, cooking skills also helped with attracting partners, since they were always so impressed with his domestic skills.

He was thankful that cooking could be easily broken down into a series of very logical and scientific steps, especially since he couldn’t exactly taste-test his creations. This amount of this ingredient, that much of another, cook it for a certain amount of time at a particular temperature, and that was it. No matter how complicated the recipe, it was only a matter of correctly measuring things out. Even though everything he made tasted revolting to him, his human victims always praised him and said he was a good cook.

Rei was about halfway through preparing the meal when he heard Nagisa walk into the kitchen. He didn’t turn around or give any indication that he knew the blond was behind him until two arms twined around his waist and Nagisa pressed his face between his shoulder blades.

“Mmn, smells good, Rei-chan,” he mumbled into his shirt.

He faked a smile to make his voice sound more cheerful. “I said that I was going to go get you once I was ready. You could have slept for a while longer.”

“I missed you too much,” Nagisa grinned. He pressed his body up against Rei’s and hugged him tighter.

Rei sighed internally but chuckled aloud. “My, you are such a troublesome person,” he said and turned around slightly. Nagisa leaned up on his tiptoes and pecked him on the lips. “I’m almost done, so could you get the coffee and utensils out there? The coffee should be done brewing.”

“Okay!” he chirped and kissed him one last time. Nagisa cheerfully fetched two mugs and poured out the fresh coffee into them. He was humming as he made his way toward the living room with everything.

Once the shorter man was out of the kitchen, Rei started dividing the food between two plates. He had taught himself how to arrange food on a plate so that it looked fuller than it actually was. By doing so, he could fool his eating companions into thinking that he was eating just as much as they were.

If he had a choice, Rei wouldn’t eat any human food at all, but that wasn’t always a viable option. Especially in situations where he would find himself around the same people constantly, he had to eat occasionally to stave off suspicion and worry.

Nagisa was on his laptop when Rei carried out the plates.

“Yay, Rei-chan!” he cheered when he saw Rei walk toward him. He shut his laptop and scooted over on the sofa.

Rei sat down next to him and placed the food on the coffee table. The shorter man immediately sidled next to him and bumped their hips together playfully.

“Thanks for making us breakfast. It looks really good!”

He smiled gently at Nagisa. “Thank you. Now let’s eat.”

“Yeah!” the blond said as he picked up his fork. “Thanks for the meal!”

Rei tried very hard to keep his expression neutral and generally pleasant as he ate. He had scrambled the eggs so that he wouldn’t have to deal with their mucus-like yolks, but they still felt curdled on his tongue. They sat like rubber lumps in his mouth, and the bacon was like oil-soaked high-grit sandpaper.

It was a little easier than usual to pretend, however, since Nagisa was so preoccupied with scarfing everything down and stealing from Rei’s plate. Even though he “protested,” Rei was hoping he would take more so he wouldn’t have to eat as much.

Nagisa made small talk with him as he ate which was a pain, since he was already doing his best not to look nauseated. On top of all that, he had to pretend to enjoy whatever the shorter man was talking about and laugh at the appropriate times. Rei regretted “warming up” to Nagisa so quickly. The blond probably would have been just as enamored with him even if he remained cold and stoic, but now it was too late. He would have to keep up the pleasant façade around Nagisa until it was time to eat him.

He tried to wash down the last shards of slick bacon with coffee. His stomach was already churning as he swallowed, but he had to keep it together for a while longer. Discreetly, Rei wiped the sweat which collected on his hairline. His throat felt scratched up by the hard edges of the bacon pieces he swallowed whole, and the congealed film which coated his mouth from the scrambled eggs was revolting.

From the way Nagisa fell back on the couch and hummed contentedly, however, he must have found breakfast delicious.

“Mmn, that was really good! Thanks for making us food, Rei-chan,” he said in a sing-song voice.

He hummed in reply and stacked their plates together. “Nagisa-kun, you can go ahead and use the bath first while I wash the dishes.”

“Eeeh, you don’t want to take a shower together?” the blond asked teasingly. He was smiling with a dangerous glint in his eyes.

Rei smiled back at him, but he was very close to snapping on the inside. The eggs and bacon he had forcibly ingested were already causing him a great amount of pain and, if he didn’t purge it soon, he would undoubtedly get rather ill. He was trying his best to get rid of Nagisa as quickly as possible, but the shorter man showed no signs of wanting to leave him alone.

“Maybe some other time,” he said smoothly and stood up. “Hurry up now. Didn’t you say that you wanted to stop by the bookstore to buy new magazines today?”

“Oh yeah! I almost forgot,” Nagisa said and bounced up. “I’ll be quick!”

Nagisa went to his bedroom for clothes while Rei returned to the kitchen and put everything into the sink. He started to do the dishes, but he was just waiting for the blond to go into the bath so he go get rid of the heavy, roiling sensation which kept clawing its way up his throat every few seconds. He kept swallowing in an attempt to keep the food at bay, but his technique wasn’t going to hold out for long.

It seemed like forever later before the door to the bath closed, and the sound of running water started up. Hurriedly, Rei dropped the fork he was rinsing, washed his hands, and made his way to the toilet. He closed the door behind him and knelt on the floor.

Rei hated doing this because it was so unsightly and disgusting, but it was a necessary evil. Even though Nagisa was still showering, the distance between the bathroom and toilet wasn’t very large, so he had to be quiet. If Nagisa heard him, it would only make things much more complicated than they had to be.

Quickly, he steeled himself and repressed the icy shudder which ran down his spine. His body knew exactly what was coming next and, along with the expectant relief of being able to purge the toxicity from himself, a curl of repulsion dug its claws deep into his bones and chilled him. Sourness already began to push against his throat.

He grimaced, opened his mouth, and shoved two fingers deep into his throat. His gag reflex was triggered immediately, and a cold sweat broke over his forehead and back as his stomach heaved. Thick, slimy saliva coated his fingers but nothing came up, so he pressed down on his tongue harder.

That was enough to set his body into motion, and he gagged. Quickly, he leaned over the bowl and braced his arms on the seat.

Rei kept his eyes closed and shuddered as the food he had previously consumed came back with a vengeance. It was awful going down, but it was so much worse coming back up. He could distinctly feel how chunky the unchewed food was as he threw up, and it was absolutely repulsive. The vile taste of the semi-digested food kept triggering him to continue.

He tried to keep his vomiting as quiet as possible though he couldn’t help the small coughs which escaped from him between sessions. There were a few times when involuntarily choked on the repugnant taste of his regurgitated meal.

Violent shudders shook his body as he expelled the poison from his stomach until nothing but sharp bile came up. He took in long, shuddery breaths through his nose and scraped his tongue on the top of his mouth. The residual bitterness made him pull his lips back in a feral snarl and shudder. Rei spat into the bowl a few times, disgusted with how stringy his saliva had gotten. He hastily flushed the toilet without looking at its contents.

He remained on the floor for a few moments to recollect himself. Vomiting always left him feeling a little weak afterwards. A sour smell hovered faintly in the air, so he flushed the toilet again. He shoved his bangs from his face and coughed roughly. A film of clammy sweat clung onto his sallow skin.

Rei heard the door to the bathroom open across the way outside, and he tensed up immediately. Nagisa was humming cheerfully as he stepped out. The humming faded gradually as the blond walked away.

“Hm? Rei-chan?” Nagisa called out after a second. It sounded like he was in the kitchen.

He cleared his throat discreetly to make sure his voice sounded normal.

“Yes?”

“Oh, you’re in the restroom!” Nagisa’s said, his voice getting closer again. “I was wondering where you went.” There was a pause, and Rei swallowed. “Hey, Rei-chan, I was wondering…” the blond said, his voice right outside the door.

Nagisa’s tone was suddenly quieter and more thoughtful than before. He could hear the blond shifting his weight on his feet and, if he focused hard enough, the breaths Nagisa pressed against the cold door. The hairs on the back of his neck rose, and he instinctively gripped the side of the toilet seat. He let his eyes bleed to black and red. A dull throbbing spread over his shoulder blades, and an itchy prickling sensation broke out over the skin there. Rei was ready to lunge through the door, depending on what the rest of Nagisa’s sentence would be.

“Do you think we could stop by the market too? I was thinking about it while showering, but it’s probably better if I had more food at home, since I sometimes get too lazy to go out and eat. You keep nagging me to buy more groceries anyway.”

It took a second for the words to click in Rei’s head. The tension in his muscles melted away, though his heartrate remained elevated. He could feel it pulse in his neck and wrists.

“I do not _nag_!” he said semi-automatically.

The blond giggled, and the direction of his voice shifted. “Whatever you say, Rei-chan! I’ll be waiting in the living room!”

It wasn’t until he heard Nagisa’s renewed humming fade away considerably that he dared to relax. Shakily, he leaned his forehead against the back of his hand which he had braced on the toilet. The bitterness which coated his mouth suffocated him as he panted.

Times like these made him wonder if the single, gourmet meal which awaited him was really worth his herculean sacrifices.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LONG TIME NO SEE, MY DEAR FRIENDS. It's been a while since I updated this fic. Seven months to be exact. My apologies. But while we're at it, Happy Halloween!
> 
> Many thanks to [Shaples](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Shaples/pseuds/Shaples), who worked hard with me to put this chapter together in time for today! To make up for _Rust's_ inadvertently long hiatus, this is an extra long chapter!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this.
> 
> (My commissions are open! For more information, [please see here](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/commissions).)
> 
> Also on [Tumblr](http://algidwind.tumblr.com/post/132273391963/the-taste-of-rust-in-my-mouth-chapter-5).

Rei was standing in front of the ice cream store Nagisa had chosen as their rendezvous spot. He had calculated his bike ride to arrive exactly ten minutes early. Nagisa, however, was nowhere to be found. He pushed his glasses up with an exasperated sigh. Even though he knew that Nagisa would be late, it didn’t lessen his agitation. They had been going out for over a month, but Nagisa had yet to arrive early for even one of their meetings.

After a few minutes of waiting, an enthusiastic voice called out to him, complete with a wave and grin. “Rei-chan!”

He quickly put a smile on and turned to face the voice. “Good afternoon, Nagisa-kun.”

“Hi!” Nagisa replied while jogging up to him. “I would've gotten here earlier, but I parked behind the Dan Quijote back there and just missed the light to cross the street. Man, those lights take for _ever_  to turn!”

“No problem. You're on time. I'm the one who arrived early.”

“Oh, phew,” he said. “I forgot where I left my bike key and thought I had lost it, but it was in my pocket the whole time! I thought I was gonna be late.”

Rei frowned. “You should put the key back in your wallet when you're done using it, like I keep telling you. You wouldn't have this problem anymore if you did.”

“Aaah!” Nagisa waved his hands around frantically to stop Rei from lecturing him further. “The important thing is that I found it, you're here, I'm here, and we're ready to go shopping, so let's go!”

Nagisa spoke so quickly that Rei didn't have any time to interject. He was pulled by the wrist and had no choice but to follow.

“Thanks for coming with me today. It's always more fun to go shopping with someone else. It shouldn't take me very long, so we can go do other stuff after this!” he said cheerily while walking ahead.

“Did you have any particular plans in mind?” Rei asked as they continued down the street. They stopped at an intersection and waited with the crowd to cross.

“Nope!” Nagisa grinned at him and hitched his messenger bag up. The stoplight changed, and everyone started to move. “But there’s always lots to do around here. I’m sure we’ll think of something eventually!”

Rei didn’t appreciate the lack of a schedule for their day, but it was too noisy and chaotic to say anything in the middle of the street. Since he didn’t know where they were going, Rei merely followed Nagisa’s lead. They entered a side street and continued down it briskly. It didn’t take long before they arrived in front of a tall building.

Nagisa had already punched the “UP” button on the elevator when Rei reached him.

“Anyway,” Nagisa said as he watched the lights above the machine slowly tick down to the ground floor, “it’s almost my friend’s birthday and she’s been talking about some new stuff that’s coming out for her favorite anime, so I thought I’d buy it for her.”

“That’s very sweet of you,” Rei said mildly.

“Hehe,” Nagisa grinned, “Isn’t it?”

The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. Nagisa hit the button for the top floor when they got in.

“I never watched the series, but Gou-chan—oh, that’s her name, by the way—said that it was good. It’s about bicycling, apparently.”

Rei nodded mechanically, not actually interested in whatever Nagisa was talking about. He paid just enough attention to pick up key details and memorized them, just in case. The elevator stopped, a female voice announced their floor, and the doors opened. A wall of loud, chaotic sound hit them immediately, and Rei recoiled. Nagisa grinned at him.

“I forgot to mention,” he half-yelled, “but the store can get a little noisy because of all the music and TV displays they have going on. It’s okay though! Let’s go!”

They went in the brightly lit store, and Rei found himself feeling disoriented from all the music and noises that were blaring at him. He preferred quiet and calm spaces, so this new landscape of vivid colors and flashing lights was jarring. Nagisa, on the other hand, seemed completely at ease in the raucous environment.

Nagisa easily navigated the aisles of merchandise, leaving Rei to linger near the entrance where all the magazines were lined up on the wall. Immediately on the right of the entrance were some glass cases which held plastic figurines in display. Rei had no idea who or what any of the characters were.

He noticed that Nagisa had pulled ahead too far, so he caught up with him while suspiciously eyeing the shelves full of miscellaneous key chains, plush dolls, and charms. Rei didn't even know why anyone would want to own such embarrassing things, but he supposed there had to be a market for them, considering the size of the displays.

When Rei reached him, Nagisa was thoughtfully holding two character straps and examining them. He perked up when he saw Rei approaching him.

“Oh, good timing, Rei-chan. Maybe you can help me figure out which of these I should buy. Gou-chan is a hardcore shipper for this one pairing in the show—I’m pretty sure it’s these two guys, since her phone is completely weighed down by their charms—but I don’t know which ones she would like best. See, here are them  _with_ cat ears and tails,” Nagisa said and gave Rei a moment to appraise the straps. “And then,” he said as he put them down and picked up another pair, “here are them with _out_  cat ears and tails.”

Rei furrowed his eyebrows. “Didn’t you say the show was about bicycling? What do cat ears and tails have anything to do with that?”

“You know what,” Nagisa said candidly, “I have no idea. I don’t think there’s a single episode where they show up with cat ears, but I guess it’s just a thing? I should ask Gou-chan the next time I see her. Anyway,” Nagisa said, lifting up the straps again, “what do you think?”

Rei frowned. He had no idea either, but Nagisa was looking at him expectantly, so he had to answer with something. “Does she like cats?”

“Maybe?” Nagisa asked rather than answered. “I think she does.”

“Then maybe you should get her the ones of them with cat ears and tails.”

“Yeah,” he said thoughtfully. “They do look cuter anyway, I think.” He picked up a pair of matching straps. “By the way,” Nagisa said, “you wanna know something really weird?”

“Hm?”

“Gou-chan showed my friends and me a clip of this anime a long time ago, right? And this one character—this one, actually—” he said and held up one of the straps which featured a blue-haired character with an impressive cowlick, “sounds almost exactly like me! Gou-chan even looked up his voice actor for me, but it was just so weird listening to him talk.” Nagisa mock shivered and grinned at Rei. “Hehe, anyway, thanks for helping me choose!”

“Of course,” he replied while fixing his glasses.

“I don’t have anything else I want to buy, but do you want to look around, Rei-chan?”

He sniffed. “I’m fine.”

“Alrighty! Let’s go then.” Nagisa nodded and started leading Rei toward the line for the counter.

As they waited, Nagisa examined the CDs lined up on the shelves to their right while Rei gazed over the shelves and tables filled with manga to their left. Absently, Nagisa said, “I hope that Gou-chan will like these. She’s been so busy lately I haven’t had the chance to introduce you to her yet, but maybe sometime soon, huh?”

“Of course,” Rei said with a small smile. In reality, though, he had no desire to meet any of Nagisa’s friends.

Suddenly, Nagisa gave out a surprised cry, startling him.

“What is it?”

Nagisa looked extremely pleased with himself. “I never asked, but do you like cats?”

The sudden inquiry took him by surprise, but it  _was_  Nagisa he was dealing with. He shook his head mentally and thought about the question. If he were perfectly honest with himself, he had a particular soft spot for cats. The discrepancy between their outward stoicism and their need for affection and attention was adorable, but that was not something he would admit to easily. He pushed his glasses up again and simply said, “I don’t dislike them.”

Nagisa seemed pleased with his answer. “Good enough!” he said, “Then I know exactly what we should do after this.”

He was about to ask for further elaboration, but one of the cashiers called out for the next customer, and Nagisa was already making his way up. Rei waited impatiently until the transaction was completed, and they both headed toward the exit and elevator. He didn’t get the chance to ask until they were out on the first floor again, since it was too awkward to talk in the crowded elevator.

“Nagisa-kun, what did you mean? Where are we going now?” he said once he got the chance. The disorganization and spontaneity of Nagisa’s plans were really starting to grate on him.

“Don’t worry about it!” Nagisa reassured him with a jaunty smile. “You’ll see once we get there.”

“I’m really not fond of how carefree your schedule is,” he said with a slight frown.

Nagisa swung the plastic bag in his hand and hummed. “Don’t sweat the small stuff, Rei-chan! It’s good to just let go and do whatever you feel like without a plan sometimes,” he said.

He huffed at the response, feeling a little miffed. Still, he had no choice but to keep trailing after Nagisa.

After some walking, the two of them ended up in front of yet another building. Rei glanced suspiciously at the A-frame sign which was placed right outside it. Laminated pictures of various cats were taped to the board and outlined with colorful chalk scribbles. In cutesy bubble letters, the words “Welcome to the Tortoiseshell Cat Café! ♥” spanned the top of the sign, followed by a list of what Rei assumed were cat names.

“A cat café?” he asked skeptically.

“Yep! People usually go to the movies or aquariums for dates, but I think a cat café is just as good!” Nagisa grinned at him and started going up the narrow stairs to the café before Rei had the chance to say anything.

He sighed as Nagisa went up. Rei had gone on dates with his previous victims, of course, and Nagisa had dragged him out on more dates than he cared to count, but they always felt like a waste of time and money. It would be better if he hurried up and stopped playing around with Nagisa. However, for the time being, he would have to persevere. Not until the end would Rei reveal himself. It was the way he played this game, and he was going to stick by it.

He had invested too much time and energy in Nagisa to give up now and, aside from that, his next feeding date was soon. Rei only needed to endure a few more days of torture. For now, however, he needed a quick pick-me-up.

While standing in front of the café’s entrance, he closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. He imagined what it would be like when it was finally time to eat Nagisa—what kind of expression would he have on, what he would say to Rei, and how much he would try to deny the truth? Rei had a feeling Nagisa would be a screamer considering how loud he was during sex, but he found that he didn’t mind that at all. On the contrary, he felt even more excited by the prospect.

He smiled faintly as he thought about how devastated Nagisa would look once he showed his real self. Rei had fooled him so fully that it would certainly crush his soul when he learned the truth. Nagisa was just so trusting and naïve. Rei shuddered blissfully at the thought.

When he opened his eyes again, he felt refreshed and invigorated. It would be worth it, he told himself. He was sure of it.

Nagisa was already speaking with the cashier by the time Rei got inside. Rei waited patiently behind him while looking into the separated room which held the cats. There were quite a few visitors since it was a Friday afternoon.

“… There’s a sink over there for you to wash your hands, so please feel free to use it,” the cashier explained with a smile.

Nagisa beamed at her and nodded. “Thanks so much!” He turned around to face Rei with a happy expression. “Here, Rei-chan,” he said, while handing him a lanyard that had a barcoded card on it. “It’s how they keep track of how long we’re in there, so just put it on,” he said. “Let’s wash our hands so we can play with the kitties!”

Judging from how easily Nagisa handled everything and walked through the space, it probably wasn’t his first time visiting this particular cat café. Wordlessly, Rei put on the lanyard and joined him at the small sink.

“It was my friend who showed me this place, since he likes playing with cats so much. Back when we were still in Iwatobi, he used to take care of a stray that lived near his house, but after moving to Tokyo, he got his cat fix by coming to places like this,” Nagisa told him while they dried their hands on paper towels.

Rei wasn’t particularly interested in his tale, but he still nodded.

“There’s this one cat I really like here. I hope we can play with her today!” Nagisa said cheerily.

Carefully, Nagisa opened the door to the separated room and entered it. Even though there were so many people present, it was quiet because everyone was speaking in lowered voices. Occasionally, an artificial shutter click would come from a cell phone and a soft, sudden burst of giggles would erupt from a corner.

Nagisa looked around to find where some of the cats were and let out a pleased cry. He tugged urgently on Rei’s wrist. “Look,” he trilled, “there she is!”

Rei found himself gazing at a particularly surly-looking white cat that was lounging on the top-most shelf of a cat climbing gym. She looked like a perfect circle from the way she was curled up. At first he thought she was sleeping, but then realized he was being coldly regarded by a pair of emotionless green eyes. Other than that, the cat gave no indication that she even cared about the two of them.

“Her name is Matcha,” Nagisa announced. “Isn’t she cute?”

He pushed up his glasses with a frown. “Nagisa-kun,” he said in an unamused voice, “this cat looks like she wants to murder everyone and burn down the world.”

Nagisa laughed easily. “Doesn’t she?” he said and reached out to pet Matcha. “That’s what makes her so cute though!” Gently, he stroked the small cat with his fingers, working them until they were at her neck. Automatically, the cat extended her head out and let him scratch her chin. Before long, they heard the distinct rumbling of Matcha’s pleased purring.

“Even though she looks super angry all the time, she’s actually very sweet and affectionate. Look,” Nagisa beckoned and stopped touching the cat. Immediately, she bumped her head against his hand and urged him to continue petting her. It wasn’t until he started again that she stopped nosing his palm and fingers. “She’s a total tsundere,” Nagisa said fondly. “Just like someone else I know,” he said, waggling his eyebrows.

Rei gave him a displeased look, which only made Nagisa giggle in response.

“You try petting her too, Rei-chan!”

He glanced over at Nagisa and then back at the cat. Rei hesitated momentarily before he raised his hand and carefully stroked Matcha’s head. Her purring didn’t stop, and he couldn’t help but be charmed by how content she looked when she closed her eyes and leaned into his touch.

“She’s cute, right?” Nagisa asked him with bright eyes.

“… Yes,” Rei answered after a moment.

“I’m glad! Oh,” Nagisa said. His concentration broke when he realized that a cat had started rubbing up against his ankles. He automatically crouched down and began playing with the newcomer, all the while murmuring to it. “Hello, you little cutie. What’s your name? You’re so fluffy!”

Rei rolled his eyes subtly at Nagisa’s cooing and continued to play with the white cat. Matcha’s fur was soft and silky, and her constant purring was calming. It had been a long time since he had been able to pet a cat, and the last time he did so, it was under very different circumstances. Since Nagisa had stopped talking to him, he just focused on petting Matcha. His mind started to drift.

He remembered a late afternoon from many years ago, where long shadows pulled from everything like melted taffy on the ground and tiny mewls came from a lonely alleyway. Rei was much younger and more impulsive then, so he had trotted into the side street without a second thought in order to search for the source of the noise. It only took him a few seconds to zero in on a clump of tall weeds.

Rei had carefully shoved aside the grass and found a little ball of fur staring back at him. It was a small kitten, maybe just a few months old. His mouth had dropped open in surprise, but he didn’t know what to say to it. Slowly, he had let the small creature smell his hand and then cautiously ran his trembling fingers over its tiny head. Its fur was soft and fuzzy beneath his fingertips. The kitten was warm, just like the fading sunlight which bathed his back.

It was then that someone called out his name, and he hurriedly ran out of the alleyway with guilt burning on his cheeks.

 _“Where were you just now?_ ”

 _“… Nowhere. Sorry_ ,” was what he said at the time, but it was a lie even he couldn’t believe.

A heavy hand had landed on his head and ruffled his hair. It wasn’t a touch of anger, but affection. He recalled the fond and somewhat regretful smile that he was greeted with when he finally dared to raise his head and peek up.

 _“Sometimes,_ ”the smile faded and said to him, _“it’s okay to be a little selfish, Rei.”_

“Rei-chan?”

Nagisa’s voice cut through his reverie, and Rei retracted his hand from Matcha instinctively. Nagisa had stood up and was peering into his face curiously.

“What’s up?” Nagisa asked with a faint look of concern.

“It’s nothing,” he said, the lie coming out much more naturally than it had in his memories. He even put on a genuine-looking smile to dispel Nagisa’s suspicions. It had been a long time since he had thought about his childhood, and the sudden recollection made him feel a little disoriented.

Nagisa didn’t seem completely convinced, but he dropped the issue without another word. Instead, he looked over to Matcha. “It looks like she really likes you.”

The white cat had gotten up and was currently peeking over the ledge of her sleeping spot with wide eyes. Her tiny paws perched precariously on the edge of the shelf, as if she were trying to get as close to Rei as possible. Petulantly, Matcha opened her mouth and meowed loudly at him, apparently displeased that he had stopped petting her.

“She’s rather demanding and needy, isn’t she,” Rei said in a flat voice. Then, he turned to Nagisa, cocked an eyebrow, and said, “Just like someone else I know.”

Nagisa nudged him with his elbow and grinned playfully. “Let’s leave Matcha alone for now! The other cats here are really cute too!”

They ended up on the couch, where a few cats were lounging. With witchcraft or some other dark art, Nagisa managed to coax one of the cats into his lap and started to pet it. Rei watched him with slight envy.

The calico cat that had perched itself on Nagisa closed its eyes contentedly and started to purr. With a chuckle, Nagisa scratched the cat’s head and leaned back in his seat. “You know that friend I mentioned earlier?” he said suddenly, drawing Rei’s attention to his face, “The one who really likes cats?”

Rei nodded.

“Back at home, he used to take care of this cat that looks a lot like Matcha. He named her ‘Shiro’ because she was all white. Back in my first year of high school, he was a second year and Shiro-chan was just a kitten, but by the time he was in his third year, she had grown up all big and pretty!”

Nagisa continued rambling on about the cat, but Rei eventually started to zone out. He wasn’t particularly interested in knowing about Nagisa’s past, but the fact that he was sharing so much about himself and his friend meant Nagisa was probably telling others about  _him_  as well. As a ghoul, the rule of thumb was to stay as unknown as possible, since too much involvement with their victims would inevitably reveal the trail of corpses that followed in their wake.

Stringing along playthings before eating them was one thing, but becoming too deeply associated with prey would only invite suspicion when it was time to eat them. It was a wonder that Rei had managed to stay in one place for so many years, despite his penchant for luring his victims into his traps as far as he could before devouring them.

The last time he tried to drag out a game, he was in his last year of junior high. He had gotten careless then and had almost given himself away. In order to escape detection, he had relocated immediately afterwards. It wasn’t a huge loss, since he wasn’t exactly attached to the town he was living in at the time, but it was a strong wake-up call and warning to him. Rei had gotten lucky only because he had been so young and people had given him too much benefit of the doubt. Now, he no longer had that luxury.

Since then, his games usually only lasted a few weeks to a month. Anything longer than that, and the risk would have been too high. Nagisa had somehow exceeded his self-set limit, and Rei was fully aware of the lines he was crossing.

He didn’t know how many people Nagisa had already told about him, but there were at least three and, realistically speaking, there had to be more. Nagisa simply talked too much and had too many friends. Rei really couldn’t wait any longer. The feast had to be soon, before his web became too convoluted and it became too late to extract himself from it.

Gradually, he drifted back into Nagisa’s one-sided conversation. He seemed to be wrapping up anyway.

“Oh—” Nagisa suddenly exclaimed. The cat he was petting suddenly stood up. With a flick of its tail, it hopped off Nagisa’s lap and sauntered away. He brushed his hands of the fur that had stuck onto him and smiled at Rei. “I guess she was done with me. It’s already been about an hour, so are you ready to go? Or do you want to play with some more?”

After coming out of such dark thoughts, it was a bit difficult to smile naturally, but Rei managed to pull it off. “I think we can go now. You mentioned that there was a park nearby that you wanted to show me too, correct?”

“Yeah, that’s right! You remembered, Rei-chan!”

“Of course,” he replied.

Nagisa grinned and bumped their shoulders together playfully. “Okay then, let’s go. The park’s especially pretty this time of the year. I’m sure you’ll like it.” He stood up and started pulling his lanyard off.

Rei followed suit, unraveling the string from his neck. He said nothing as they paid, his mind too busy with formulating a plan on how and when to kill Nagisa. It would be easiest to do at one of their apartments, but it would also be more suspicious since it would narrow down the list of potential suspects greatly. Random break-ins and murders were too rare, so the suspicion would almost immediately fall on Rei because he was so intimate with Nagisa.

It would be best to do it in somewhere semi-public in the middle of the night, just like he usually carried out his hunts. It would be a shame, since Nagisa was really such a fine specimen and Rei would have liked to be able to savor his flesh in a better environment, but the risks were too high otherwise. Maybe he could take some parts for savoring at home—perhaps a leg and one of his eyeballs would be good—but the majority of his meal will have to be consumed on the spot. Carrying around a bag full of body parts was just asking for trouble, after all.

While Nagisa was distracted, Rei took a good look at his side profile. It really was too bad, since he was such a good fuck.

“Okay, Rei-chan, let’s go!”

The happy exclamation made him snap out of it, and he nodded. “Certainly.”

To reach the park, they first had to get out of the shopping district and through the train station. The area away from the tightly packed stores and tall buildings was markedly homier and calmer. As they went down the sharp slope which led into the park, they chatted casually and looked at the smaller shops which lined the streets. Soon, the concrete dropped off into a series of steps, and the rush of rustling leaves filled the air.

According to Nagisa’s report, the park was filled with sakura trees which bloomed beautifully in the spring and was a lush and heavy green in the summer, but since autumn was settling in, they had begun their yearly blush into vivid oranges and reds. The park consisted of a single large lake, outlined with wooden railings and some small bridges which served as shortcuts to the other side. Tall, large-leafed trees grew along the entire perimeter of the area, covering the whole park in cool shade.

“Nice, huh?” Nagisa asked while coming to a stop beside him. “There are some really pretty hydrangea bushes that bloom in the summer, but it’s probably too late in the season to see them now. The trees are still really great to look at though!”

“Yes,” he agreed. “This is a very lovely place indeed.”

Nagisa giggled, pleased with himself. “There’s a shrine over there we can visit if you’d like,” he suggested.

“Why not?” Rei said and smiled.

They started slowly going around the park, first passing by a rowdy crowd of people watching a performer doing a juggling and balancing act before entering a quieter territory where couples and families sat on benches and watched the lake.

Together, they walked and listened to the cool, relaxing sound of wind rolling through the trees. It was so reminiscent of ocean waves that, when they closed their eyes, it felt like they were standing in front of the sea. When Rei looked up, the light flickering through the thick canopy even resembled the way sunlight filtered through clear water, making it feel like they were underneath bright waves.

Their unhurried pace allowed Nagisa to point out all his favorite spots in the park, like the area where one side of the lake ended and some turtles and koi lived, a spot where the trailing branches of a low tree brushed against the surface of the lake, and a corner where fountains sprayed water into the air and created perpetual circles which rippled along the lake’s surface. They walked around and admired the modest shrine’s architecture when they reached it.

It occurred to Rei somewhere between one of Nagisa’s many exuberant explanations of each building’s historical background that this was probably the most “fun” he has had with another person in a long time. Being a ghoul made it difficult to seek out companionship and he was already a natural introvert, so it wasn’t often that he spent time with others unless absolutely necessary. And most of those necessities were food-related, which reduced the number of meaningful interactions Rei had even further.

He lowered his gaze and peered at Nagisa with his peripheral vision. Despite the fact that they hadn’t spoken for many minutes, Nagisa didn’t seem bored or antsy. He was just admiring the scenery he must have seen dozens of times before. Rei found himself enjoying Nagisa’s company as well. Although he was usually loud and invasive, the moments Nagisa was silent like this were pleasant. Just being able to walk next to him made Rei feel oddly calm and comfortable.

They were walking along a quieter stretch of the park when Nagisa’s warm hand suddenly slipped into his. Holding hands was not one of Rei’s favorite activities, but he still squeezed Nagisa’s hand reassuringly.

“Let’s sit here for a while,” Nagisa suggested, but he was already pulling Rei toward an unoccupied bench.

They had spent enough time at the park that the sun had begun to set. Now, the area was seeped in warm, orange light, and the lake’s green surface glittered. Together, they sat by the lake’s edge, listening to the chirping of birds and soft burbling of the water.

Usually, he would have never allowed Nagisa be so affectionate with him in public, but Rei didn’t mind when Nagisa snuggled up to him and leaned his head on his shoulder. The bench they were on was surrounded by leafy branches and dark shadows, both which provided them with a good amount of privacy. It helped that they were at the back of the park, which people didn’t walk to as often.

 He stroked his thumb over Nagisa’s hand as they watched the sky grow darker and the scenery before them transform. A soft kiss touched his jaw, prompting Rei to turn his head. Nagisa’s next kiss landed gently on his lips, and he automatically opened his mouth.

Rei slipped the tip of his tongue into Nagisa’s mouth and licked him gently. It was a simple and chaste kiss which Rei made sweeter by cradling Nagisa’s cheek with his hand. He sighed when Nagisa sucked on his tongue and then retaliated by nipping on his lower lip. The sound of their kisses was barely audible over the natural din of the park and almost blended in with the lapping of the lake’s waves.

Nagisa giggled and pulled away, pressing a hand on his thigh and moving closer. He nudged their noses together and pecked him on the lips several times playfully. Then, as if embarrassed by his actions, Nagisa buried his face into the crook of Rei’s neck and hugged him.

They fell back into a comfortable silence like that. The park was completely covered in shadows, and the lampposts around the perimeter of the lake had turned on without their notice.

It occurred to Rei that this would be a good place to kill Nagisa, but it wasn’t the right time. It was still too early in the night, and despite how abandoned the area seemed, there were still many people around. The chances of being caught were too high.

After a while, Nagisa broke the silence. “Wanna grab dinner?” he asked.

“Sure. I was just thinking about that.”

Nagisa seemed reluctant to pull away from their embrace, but he let go eventually. In short time, they completed the loop around the park and made their way back into the city’s center, where they found a small family restaurant to dine in.

“Rei-chan,” Nagisa said between mouthfuls of rice, “do you have anything to do over the weekend?”

He was in the middle of hastily swallowing a bite of sandwich whole when Nagisa asked him. With Nagisa watching him so closely, Rei had no choice but to gulp down the dry sponge-bread with some coffee. He cleared his throat. “Not really. I finished most of my assignments already, though I wanted to get ahead on some readings for next week.”

“So…” Nagisa drawled impishly, while sliding the straw of his iced tea between his teeth and tongue, “you’re not too busy?”

After being around Nagisa so much, Rei was pretty certain where this conversation was leading, especially with how Nagisa was licking his straw. He “cautiously” replied with, “No…?”

Nagisa bit down on his straw and grinned. “Great! Then that means you could stay over at my place, right?”

Rei laughed softly from his nose at Nagisa’s predictability. “Sure, if you want.”

“Okay! Well, I’m basically done with everything I needed to do here, so after this, let’s head back?”

“A little eager to go back home, aren’t you?” he asked teasingly.

Nagisa only laughed without answering.

It was fine, Rei decided. Since he was planning to eat Nagisa soon—probably within the next week or so—it would be good to get one last fuck in before the whole farce ended.

Rei let Nagisa talk to him about a variety of trivial things as they finished dinner and, after excusing himself to the restroom in order to purge what he had just eaten, the two of them were ready to go. They had parked their bikes at different parts of the city, so they had to split up.

Rei was the first one to reach their meeting spot. By his calculations, it should have only taken Nagisa about 10 minutes to get his bike and come back, but 20 minutes had passed and he was still nowhere to be found. Rei kept checking his phone and debating on whether or not he should call Nagisa, but in the end, he didn’t. After another five minutes passed, Nagisa finally came into view. He was panting slightly as he braked in front of Rei.

“Sorry, Rei-chan!” he said. “There was some weird police activity going on back there, and I couldn’t use the main road to get back! It was super packed with people in the side streets, so I had to walk my bike through the crowd!”

Automatically, Rei’s eyes glanced to the direction Nagisa had come from. He knew this city was the hunting grounds for at least two ghouls and tried to keep out of it the best he could, but he doubted ghoul activity was the reason why the street was closed off. It was still early in the evening and a Friday on top of that. The nightlife of the city was just starting to pick up, which made it dangerous to hunt now. He shook off the thoughts.

“It’s fine,” he said, finally addressing Nagisa. “Let’s just go back to your place. I’m sure it’s nothing.”

“Yeah,” Nagisa replied, putting one foot on a pedal. “I bet it was just a small accident or something….”

Since Rei had stayed over often enough to have extra outfits and a toothbrush there, they didn’t need to stop by his apartment for supplies and headed straight to Nagisa’s apartment. Rei rode behind Nagisa and enjoyed the silence on the way back.

He partly expected Nagisa to initiate sex as soon as they crossed the threshold, but he didn't. Instead, Nagisa just dropped his purchases on the kitchen counter, cleaned the apartment half-heartedly, and complained to Rei about the essays he had to finish by the end of the term and how much he was  _not_  looking forward to doing them.

Somehow, the two of them ended up on Nagisa’s small couch, going over source materials and putting together an outline for one of his history papers. Hours passed like this and, miraculously, they actually managed to make some progress, despite the fact that Nagisa spent most of his time trying to steal kisses from Rei. When the apartment got dark and Nagisa’s limit for productivity had been hit, they turned on the television and flipped through the channels.

Nagisa lay down with his head in Rei’s lap, and Rei absentmindedly stroked Nagisa’s hair. The glow of the TV was bright and rendered the rest of the room black, but neither of them could be bothered to turn on the lights.

Rei reached the news channel and let it play for a little. The news anchor had just finished a report on global tariff agreements and was beginning a new segment. She looked a little grim as she spoke.

“ _A few hours ago,_ _the_ _body of a young man was found in an alleyway in the Musashino Ward._ ”

Nagisa stiffened in his lap, and Rei immediately started to raise the remote to change the channel, but Nagisa placed a hand on top of his and stopped him. The news continued.

“ _Officials have declared this case another ghoul attack, which makes this the third one of the month. The body was found by a local, who reported the incident to the CCG._ ”

The visuals on the screen changed to some man-on-the-street footage. Flashing red and blue lights filled the screen as a shaky camera captured video of yellow tape sectioning off a particularly dingy-looking back alley. No signs of the attack were visible, but it was enough to let the viewers’ imaginations run.

“ _The scene has been cleaned up by the CCG, who say that they’ll be doing their best to find the culprit._

 _“Next up in local news, the story of how youth volunteer groups are trying to reach out to the homeless and provide them with support…._ ”

Whatever the youth volunteer groups were doing, neither of them really paid attention to. Both of them had gone quiet since the television was turned on, but now, the silence had had gained a different quality to it.

Nagisa took a deep breath and curled his fingers more tightly on Rei’s pants. “I passed by that earlier,” whispered softly. “I can’t believe it. That’s terrible.” Rei prepared himself to listen to a full tirade about the evils of ghouls and how they should all die.

To speed up the process, Rei rolled his eyes and said, with expertly concealed disdain, “That someone died?”

Gently, Nagisa shifted in his lap. “Well—yes, but I mean, this probably happened when we were eating dinner, right? We were just enjoying ourselves and someone out there was  _killed_. You don’t see anyone hunting  _us_  down for eating, but people’re out there trying to find this ghoul and to kill them. I know it’s really horrible that someone’s dead, but don’t you also think it’s terrible that ghouls can  _only_  eat humans? I mean, it’s not like they can help it, right? I don’t really know a whole lot except for what the news tells us, but… if humans are the only things they can eat, then it can’t really be helped. In some twisted way, I suppose.”

Rei was surprised by the sympathy Nagisa was expressing for ghouls who hunted people for prey and destroyed families and lives to maintain their own existence. He had never heard anyone say a kind word about ghouls before, and he had never expected to either. Yet, here he was on a cramped couch with his next meal in his lap trying to sympathize with his kind.

“Humans don’t get demonized even though we eat all sorts of animals because we perceive them as ‘not intelligent enough,’ but I think to the animals we eat, we’re just as ‘monstrous’ as ghouls.  _We_  have the choice to eat different things, or at least to kill our food more humanely, but we don’t.

“But for ghouls, who don’t have a choice and can only survive on humans and then get treated like demons—I can see why they’d be so upset and… vicious when they eat us. I don’t really believe what they tell us on TV, y’know. Like how every ghoul is evil and bloodthirsty? I don’t think a whole group can be exactly the same. You can’t say  _every_ cat or dog or person is the same way, so why do we say that about ghouls?”

Rei could feel the way Nagisa’s muscles tensed and breath became tight. It was as if he was getting angry just thinking about what he was talking about.

“Don’t you think maybe they have families too? And friends? And lives just as different as humans? Maybe they’re just trying to get by like us, but they have to eat too. And that can’t be helped. I mean, I wish that it could be, because… y’know, I don’t want to be eaten—” Nagisa chuckled nervously “—but yeah. They call ghouls the monsters, but sometimes, I think we humans have the ability to be way worse than ghouls.” He sucked in a breath and turned so that he was on his back and his face was turned toward Rei. The bright glow from the TV cast him in stark light and shadow. “I’unno. That’s just what I’ve always thought, anyway,” he concluded quietly.

“Hm.” Rei smiled softly and ran his thumb along Nagisa’s exposed hairline. He had certainly not expected Nagisa to go on such a thoughtful, philosophical rant, but he appreciated it. “That was surprisingly deep,” he said.

“Hey,” Nagisa grinned. “I’m just saying.”

“But what if a ghoul killed someone you loved?”

The question took both of them by surprise. Rei’s words had slipped past his lips before his mind had the time to process them. A chill burned through his blood.

Nagisa’s expression closed off as he pondered. After a few seconds, he slowly said, “At first, I think I’d be really angry and upset. Mad enough to want all ghouls to be killed.” He breathed in. “But then, maybe after that—and I don’t know how long that’ll take—I guess I’d want to know why. Or—maybe like… who they are and what their lives are like.

“I’d probably still be really angry, even if I found out the reason, or even if they had no choice, but maybe it’d make me feel a little better… or something like that. Maybe I’d never forgive them either, but I don’t know.” Nagisa laughed humorlessly. “I’m saying all these things, but it’s all speculation. If something like that really happens—and I really,  _really_  hope it doesn’t—I’d probably be way too angry to be rational about anything.” His solemn eyes turned to Rei. “What about you, Rei-chan? What would you do if a ghoul killed someone you loved?”

“I don’t know,” he responded. “I never really thought about it.”

“Yeah,” Nagisa said wistfully while staring blindly at the ceiling. “I guess it’s not something people like to think about. Like, it’s something that  _could_  happen, but we try to ignore it and pretend the possibility doesn’t exist, just so we can feel better for ourselves. Ignorance is bliss, and all that jazz. It’s like how we never think about whether or not the people around us might be ghouls.”

“Do you think about it?”

Nagisa laughed. “No. I’m just as much a hypocrite as everyone else.”

Rei hummed under his breath. He leaned over Nagisa and gazed into his eyes. “And what if  _I_  were a ghoul, Nagisa-kun?”

Nagisa snorted and shook his head. “Well, that would suck a lot,” he grinned. The next second, the lighthearted sparkle in his eyes gave way to seriousness. “But I’d want to know your story too. I mean, I still want to know more about you, even though you’re not a ghoul,” he mused with a touch of humor. “I think we just jump to conclusions too quickly. Instead of trying to find a way to coexist with ghouls, all we do is hunt them down and kill them. We don’t even try to understand them. They’re just like us, right? So I don’t get why we don’t try to learn more about them. I feel like humans get so scared so quickly that we don’t even stop to consider options other than the complete annihilation of any possible threat toward us.”

“Deep,” Rei said again while tugging lightly on a tuft of Nagisa’s hair. He wound it around his finger lightly.

“Stop that,” he said while swatting playfully at Rei. “I’m being serious here. And you’re the one who asked!”

“So I was,” Rei conceded lightly.

Slowly, Nagisa pushed himself up and turned his body toward Rei. He tilted his head and pressed their lips together. “Just so you know though, if  _I_ were a ghoul, I wouldn’t hesitate to eat you up, Rei-chan,” he purred and grinned.

Rei raked his fingers through Nagisa’s mussed up hair and returned the predatory smile. “Really now?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Mmhmm. Want me to show you how I’d do it?” he whispered hotly and threw his legs over Rei’s lap so he was straddling him.

His pulse picked up as he ran a hand down Nagisa’s side and slipped his thumb beneath the hem of his shirt. “Maybe,” he said, staring at Nagisa’s lips and flicking his gaze up. The invitation was taken up almost immediately as Nagisa leaned forward hungrily and pushed his tongue into Rei’s mouth.

In the background, the sound of the television was still going, the unlit room flashing bright and dark with the images on the screen. Blindly, Rei scrabbled for the remote and switched it off so they were left with only the scarce light from the window. In the sudden ringing silence, their kissing sounded even louder than before.

Rei rubbed his hands up and down Nagisa’s thighs, and Nagisa worked on pushing the buttons of Rei’s shirt open. When Nagisa rolled his hips forward and ground down, Rei moaned and held him still with his hands on his ass. Both of them were hard.

“Bedroom?” Nagisa asked with a sultry undertone in his voice, and his eyes gleamed in the dark.

“You don’t take your meals at the dining table?” Rei asked.

Nagisa laughed and stood up, offering a hand to him. With a grin, Rei took it and got off the couch. He used his height to lean over Nagisa and dominate their kiss, but Nagisa was having none of that. Rei felt the short ends of his hair get pulled on, and he was forced to draw away.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Rei-chan,” Nagisa said with a devilish smile. He winked and pulled Rei along by the hand to the bedroom, which was just as dark as the living room but better stocked for their activities. Once they were able to make their way to the messy futon and fall onto it, Nagisa crawled up to Rei and breathily commanded, “Sit against the wall.”

Rei obliged without complaint and moved until his back was flush with the wall behind him. He left his legs spread and knees bent and watched Nagisa silently. Even in the dark, Rei could see the glowing flush on Nagisa’s cheeks and the hungry look in his eyes. As with every time Nagisa took the initiative, Rei felt a thrill of anticipation and excited fear lace his blood. He shrugged off his shirt and tossed it to the side, and Nagisa did the same.

When their mouths met again, Nagisa’s kiss was harsh and needy. Rei couldn’t help the throaty moan that Nagisa squeezed out of him with his wandering hands and purposeful touches. His thighs burned with the lingering feel of Nagisa’s trailing fingertips, and he arched invitingly into them.

Just when he thought Nagisa would continue teasing and riling him up, he slipped his hands between them, pushing apart the button on Rei’s pants and pulling down his zipper. There was no finesse in the way Nagisa yanked down his pants and boxers, but Rei couldn’t have cared less. All he wanted was pleasure and release.

Nagisa moved messily down his chest with an open mouth. Rei jolted when Nagisa let long, deliberate breaths and tiny licks sweep over his skin. Soon, Nagisa’s lips were hovering over his hard length, not touching it, but just panting heavily on it to drive Rei crazy. He nuzzled his nose against the skin of Rei’s thighs and kissed him softly.

Rei tightened his fingers in Nagisa’s hair and roughly pushed his head down further. “You look so good between my legs,” he said with a raspy voice.

Nagisa groaned and rested his forehead on Rei’s thigh, his fingers digging into his muscle. “You’re going to be the death of me,” he said.

Rei might have laughed had Nagisa not chosen that exact moment to swallow him whole. The sudden heat around him made him yell and jerk up. He heard Nagisa grunt when he inadvertently thrust farther into his throat, but Rei wasn’t in the right mind to care. He took in ragged breaths and peered through his glasses to watch.

It was oddly satisfying seeing how full Nagisa’s mouth was with his cock. Even his breathing had become labored due to how deeply he had taken Rei in. Softly, he stroked Nagisa’s cheeks and slowly lifted his hips. He was rewarded with hazy eyes peeking up at him and slow, gentle sucks around the head of his cock. Low vibrations suddenly trilled over his sensitive dick, and Rei leaned his head back against the wall. He let his mouth hang open as Nagisa pleasured him, not even bothering to muffle his voice.

Nagisa’s soft tongue wriggled against the underside of his dick, then he started bobbing his head. The suction around him was dizzyingly good, especially with how enthusiastically Nagisa moved on him. He was quick but thorough, moving and twisting his head on Rei to mix up the sensations. Nagisa was loud too, moaning and whining exaggeratedly to egg him on. The pure obscenity of their voices made Rei grow hotter.

A lewd mix of precum and saliva leaked from the corners of Nagisa’s mouth and onto the futon, but neither of them cared. Rei could barely even focus on the mind-numbing sensation of having his slit teased and prodded by Nagisa’s relentless tongue, much less worry about future laundry duties. His breath caught each time Nagisa mouthed and suckled on his tip like a particularly delicious treat, and he let thick spurts of bitterness coat Nagisa’s tongue.

Wet heat tingled and pulsed in him, and Rei started rolling his hips up more quickly. It would be a shame just to finish in Nagisa’s mouth, but Rei was having trouble trying to restrain himself. He wanted to see his own cum dripping from Nagisa’s tongue and lips, or maybe splattered across his bright cheeks and long lashes. The hot, primal need to debauch and claim rang shrilly in his mind, and Rei began growling without realizing it. The tell-tale signs of release prickled and built in him while he fucked Nagisa’s willing mouth, first as the tensing of his muscles and tightening of his breath, and then as the heavy throbbing deep in his core.

Rei should have known better than to believe Nagisa would let him cum so easily though. He had learned Rei’s reactions quickly and completely removed his mouth from Rei’s cock just a few sucks before his release. Nagisa laughed coarsely, his voice roughened by his eager blowjob.

Immediately, the tingling in Rei’s body began to fade, and he snarled in frustration. His fingers were still tightly wound in Nagisa’s hair, so he yanked on it in displeasure.

Instead of getting upset though, all Nagisa did was let his head get pulled to the side and continue smiling his shit-eating grin. He used his tongue to deliberately lick the corners of his mouth and swallowed. “Not yet, Rei-chan. I still wanna fuck you.” He leaned in close to Rei’s ear and rubbed the tip of his nose into his hair. “Turn around and get on your hands and knees for me?” his voice was throaty and rough, but his tone sweet and disarming. He followed the request with a gentle kiss to the side of Rei’s face.

Rei was certain Nagisa was among the few who could ask such a filthy thing with such an innocent façade. He had half the mind to just push Nagisa down and have his way with him, but instead, Rei did as he was asked and turned around.

He felt Nagisa’s hands on his ass almost immediately, kneading and squeezing greedily. A shift on the blankets alerted Rei of Nagisa’s change in posture, and then warm lips and teeth were playing over his spread cheeks. Nagisa kissed and bit him lightly, easing Rei’s pants and boxers down.

Rei let slow, measured breaths trickle into the pillow as Nagisa teased him. His body grew hot again when he heard the cap of the lube bottle get popped open and the slick sound of Nagisa rubbing it between his fingers. He tensed a bit when a dry hand rubbed up the back of his thigh and to the curve of his ass. Warm breath fanned over him as Nagisa rested his cheek against his smooth skin and sloppily kissed him.

“Ready, Rei-chan?” he asked as he slid the length of his wet fingers against Rei’s hole.

Taken slightly off guard, Rei instinctively shifted away from Nagisa’s touch, but then he relaxed and widened his stance. Nagisa’s fingers weren’t as thick as his, but he was dexterous and quick, which Rei appreciated greatly. It always turned him on how impatiently Nagisa stretched him out too.

With a hum and a sigh, Nagisa said, “Okay,” and that was the only warning Rei received before he felt the blunt edges of Nagisa’s short nail scratch at his hole and his middle finger slide all the way in him. Without waiting, Nagisa began thrusting and curling it. Within seconds, he pressed his ring finger in as well.

It was nothing Rei couldn’t handle, and he almost wished for a little more burn. He groaned softly and rocked his hips back to goad Nagisa. Rei grinned wickedly into the pillow when he felt Nagisa spread his fingers apart and stretched him more roughly. Nagisa wasn’t the only one who knew how to manipulate others.

Nagisa trailed slow, sensual kisses from his ass up to the dip of his spine. They tickled ever-so-slightly, which contrasted with the hot friction in his hole. Nagisa had pushed in a third finger somewhere between a kiss on Rei’s shoulder blade and his neck. Long digits stroked him deeply and drew obscene squelching noises from him.

“Rei-chan….” Nagisa’s breath was hot against the shell of his ear. “I can’t wait any longer. Can I—?”

The deliberate curl and push of Nagisa’s finger against his sweet spot made Rei shudder. “Yeah.” That was all he was able to say before the warmth at his back disappeared, and Nagisa’s fingers slipped from him.

Soon, Nagisa returned, his thighs edged so close to Rei’s that he could feel the heat emanating off them. The crinkle of a condom packet tearing and the subsequent snap of their lube bottle reached him, and Rei prepared himself.

Two hands—one slippery with residual lubricant—gripped his cheeks firmly and pushed them apart. The hard line of Nagisa’s erection rubbed against his hole, slick and warm. Above and behind him, Nagisa hummed in anticipation.

“You look so good,” Nagisa said huskily, and pressed his tip to Rei’s entrance. His voice turned guttural and aspirated as he pushed in.

Rei gripped the blankets tightly between his fingers. The pressure of being filled with Nagisa made his throat tight, but he still grinned through it. He could hear his own ragged breath dragging across the coarse fabric of the pillow as he was stretched apart. Nagisa was careful and slow, but Rei could tell from the quality of his small moans and sighs that he was getting impatient. Once he felt Nagisa settle deep inside him and their thighs press together, he squeezed his inner muscles deliberately. The choked noise Nagisa let out was delicious.

“Rei-chan….” His name was breathed like a sacred word, and Rei shifted on his knees.

Nagisa was appraising him; Rei could feel his gaze weighing heavily upon his exposed form. One of Nagisa’s hands smoothed up his back, warm and sensual. It traveled from his waist to his shoulder, brushed along the nape of his neck and trailed down the dip of his spine. The deliberate sound of skin rubbing on skin wasn’t loud, but joined with their mismatched panting and thrumming heartbeats, it was perfect. In the end, Nagisa left his hand planted firmly on the small of his back and massaged him there. He dragged himself in and out slowly, experimentally, as if he still needed to experiment and they hadn’t already pushed their boundaries to breaking with each other multiple times before.

The slowed pace of their activities made Rei felt impatient, and he forcefully rocked his hips back to press Nagisa in deeper. For good measure, he let out a wanton groan and clenched again. It was by no means subtle, but it was enough to finally spur Nagisa out of his gentle stupor.

Almost automatically, Nagisa pulled back and pushed in with a smart smack. There was no pause after that, only strong, steady thrusts which violently forced pleasure into Rei. Nagisa’s hand was hot on his lower back as he rammed into him repeatedly. Rei arched up and let it happen, only stifling his guttural cries when his mouth became too dry and he had to swallow hasty breaths. The wet slapping noises became frantic, and the sudden movements made Rei’s glasses slip down his nose. He shook them off and let them drop on the bed.

Nagisa leaned over him again and wound an arm around him, moaning openly on his neck. Nagisa’s desperate panting made his skin warm and damp, but Rei didn’t mind. He enjoyed knowing how overwhelmed Nagisa was feeling from fucking him. Nagisa murmured to him affectionately, kissing and nibbling at his ear, but Rei only laughed and reached a hand back to bury into Nagisa’s hair. He turned his head and leaned his weight to one side so their mouths would line up, then kissed Nagisa as deeply as he could. The response he received was instantaneous and just as enthusiastic. At that angle, they couldn’t maintain a clean kiss, so their saliva ended up dripping off their chins and onto the futon.

Nagisa continued rutting his hips against Rei as they made out. The head of his cock didn’t always hit Rei’s sweet spot, but the times it did were enough to make his breath hitch softly. The buildup of pressure was rough but slow. It wasn’t enough.

“More,” Rei growled and dug his fingernails harder into Nagisa’s scalp. He wriggled his ass and squeezed.

Nagisa moaned and tightened his grip around his waist. He pulled out almost all the way and slammed back in violently, going as far as Rei’s body let him. With tight, gyrating circles, he stimulated Rei and used his hand to milk precum from his cock.

“S’good, Nagisa-kun,” Rei breathed. His body burned. The sharp, bright sparks he felt from being jerked off contrasted well with the intense waves which wracked his body as he was fucked hard and fast. “You’re so deep!” He let out a cry when Nagisa roughly stroked his thumb over his tip and twisted his wrist.

“It feels—good in you too, Rei-chan,” Nagisa replied breathlessly. His face was pressed against the side of Rei’s head, and he was panting brokenly as he pounded into him. Small whimpers leaked from his throat and into Rei’s hair. “I wanna make you cum so hard,” he said, and arched his back so his hips were flushed with Rei’s ass. Nagisa groaned as he crammed himself inside Rei’s tight hole and sighed. Gently, he swayed back and forth, barely moving so his tip would stroke against Rei’s prostate in short bursts. “I want you to blow your load everywhere while I stuff you full myself,” he went on, and his hand continued to stroke slowly and surely. Each pump emphasized his words.

“Yeah?” Rei asked challengingly. “Is that a promise? Are you going to fuck me any harder than this then?” He pushed his ass back to drive Nagisa deeper and then thrust forward into the tight grip around his dick. “Or am I going to have to get myself off?” He continued moving sinuously, and Nagisa let him. The wetness in his ass and on his cock created filthy sounds as he pleasured himself. Apparently, his actions were erotic enough to short-circuit Nagisa, because he had completely stopped moving and was only moaning with Rei’s movements.

It wasn’t until Rei began to thrust in earnest and their fucking grew louder that Nagisa snapped out of it. Without warning, Rei’s upper body was pressed to the futon and his ass dragged higher up. Strong fingers pressed into his cheeks and pulled him apart. Rei shoved his face against the pillow and whined sluttily. Finally, Nagisa was manhandling the way he wanted.

Nagisa’s pace was wild and harsh. The rim of Rei’s ass burned from the friction, and he almost laughed in blind dizziness at the sensation. He felt so full, it was almost as if Nagisa had swelled up even more in arousal.

Rei let out short yells in time with Nagisa’s thrusts and reached between his legs. He grasped himself and pumped messily. He was too far gone to try and maintain a coherent pace, but the sensations were good enough. Nagisa had reangled himself and was more consistently ramming against his sweet spot, making Rei feel dizzy with every throbbing pulse that went through him. His cock leaked nonstop, and he could feel everything dripping between his fingers.

The push and pull in his hole was intensified by the sharp slapping of Nagisa’s thighs on him, which were probably reddening his skin. By the time they were done, Rei knew his hole would be pink and raw and there would be bruises on his ass. Sweat lined his hairline and dripped off his temples. He was so close to climax.

The tingling in his stomach and cock was growing stronger with each of Nagisa’s thrusts, and his muscles were beginning to tense. Rei only knew he was still breathing because of how much he was groaning and crying out and, judging from how loud Nagisa had become, he was nearing the edge too.

Everything became pure heat and ecstasy, and there was nothing else Rei could feel. His lust had sunk its teeth into his pulse and clawed at his skin. He snarled against the pillow as pure euphoria filled him.

He tugged harder on himself, teasing and rubbing his sensitive tip and running his rough fingers down the entire length quickly. Pleasure ramped up in him abruptly, and Rei stiffened. He let out a yell as warm slickness spilled from him. A deep, intense tingling flooded his senses and rendered him blind for a second. A sharp thrust from Nagisa on his prostate made his voice become strangled, and he hummed incoherently and in short bursts. He shook as his cock pushed cum out and made it splatter all over his hand. Wet dribbles fell on the bedsheets.

Nagisa was still moving in him, frantic and wild, his hands kneading even more harshly on his ass. It took several more thrusts before he cried out and shuddered. His hips still jerked back and forth weakly as he came, but Rei couldn’t be bothered to react beyond simply panting while he squeezed the tip of his dripping length.

Both of them were still for a long time. The fingers on his ass loosened their grip, and Nagisa gasped raggedly. “Sorry,” he managed to say as he began to softly massage Rei’s sore muscles. “I kind of… left marks.”

Rei merely hummed in response and wiped his hand on the sheets. His body felt heavy, and all he wanted to do was lie down and sleep.

Although he was obviously not completely recovered, Nagisa still pulled out and went to throw away the used condom. In the time it took him to go to the wastebasket and come back, Rei had already put his glasses somewhere safe and thrown aside the dirtied sheets. Nagisa returned to Rei’s arms, tired but eager, and they both collapsed on the futon.

Nagisa let out a long sigh of content and wiggled comfortably. His eyelids were weighed down with drowsiness as he gazed at Rei. A silly grin tugged at his lips. He appeared very satisfied and warm.

Absentmindedly, Rei reached up and started stroking Nagisa’s hair as he would with a cat. He felt Nagisa’s leg hook around his, and his strong arm snaked around his waist and cradled against his back. The remaining dredges of euphoria made Rei feel sedated, so he allowed Nagisa to cling to him without complaint.

When Nagisa leaned in for a kiss, he returned it without thought, only relishing in the calm comfort and sensuality of molding their lips together. Nagisa rubbed his fingertips slowly over his shoulder blades as they kissed, and Rei closed his eyes. They parted after a moment, and the next time Rei opened his eyes, Nagisa was gazing at him openly with a mix of awe and adoration. Even in his hazy state, a weak strain of recognition seeped into his veins. He knew this look.

Nagisa was quickly falling asleep, but he still grinned goofily at Rei and hugged him. He sucked in a deep breath through his nose and sighed happily. Slowly, the intervals between his blinks grew longer and longer until he ended up just closing his eyes. Rei didn’t stop scratching at his scalp the entire time.

Just before he drifted off, Nagisa inhaled again. His lips parted gently and small, whispered words reached Rei’s ears.

“I love you.”

They hung in the air just like that: unadorned and completely candid.

Nagisa’s breathing became deep and even, and Rei knew he had fallen asleep. He, too, was beckoned by the call of drowning slumber, but Nagisa’s words had woken him up a little. Slowly, he pressed his nose against the still-damp roots of Nagisa’s hair and inhaled the smell of his thick musk and sweat. His hunger was a little more subdued than usual since he had just satiated his lust for sex, but a twinge of bloodthirst was still there.

Rei sighed exasperatedly and held Nagisa’s warm, naked body closer. It would have to be soon. While he drifted off into unconsciousness, Rei began to make plans for the coming week. A weekend seemed better than a weekday, and the late witching hours would be more convenient than the early evening. It was time, and he was ready.

He left Nagisa’s confession unanswered and vaguely hoped that he would have forgotten about it by the time they woke again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The neighborhood Rei and Nagisa go to in this chapter is actually a real place!
> 
> It's called [Kichijoji](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kichij%C5%8Dji) and is located about 30 minutes away from Tokyo proper. Fun fact: Kichijoji also is featured in the TG anime!
> 
> The station that was mentioned several times is the [Kichijoji Station](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kichij%C5%8Dji_Station).
> 
> Nagisa parks his bike behind a "Dan Quijote," but that's actually a rip-off name (like I-HAP from a few chapters back) of the real chain store, [Don Quijote](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Quixote). Their first stop is an [Animate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animate), and then the "Tortioseshell Cat Cafe," which is based off the [Calico Cat Cafe](http://catcafe.jp/).
> 
> Their last stop is [Inokashira Park](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inokashira_Park), which, ironically enough, is known as the "Break-Up Park" in real life. Apparently, couples who go here together break up soon afterwards. Is this rumor true? I don't know, but I guess you'll just have to read and see if it applies to Rei and Nagisa!
> 
> Man, I really miss this place.... Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter! C=


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